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NULL mag Issue 04 06 Phenom Productions Group Interview
Why Phenom? Who got the idea?
(Smooth) I created PHENOM PRODUCTIONS! I created it because I felt it was time
for something totally NEW and fresh. There are still old groups that have
survived the times like DORE, ACiDiC, and Demonic. The BBS community needed
mod releases that were more than just simple regurgitation of common mods of
the 90s. They had the be innovative and relevant. I wanted to build a team
that thought outside the box. We all work together to take our mods to the
next level but also provide some goodies to remind us of the past.
How and why, Did you decide to make Phenom? After all now days, BBSes
are in a decline. is it nostalgia?
(Smooth) BBS numbers will continually decline if nothing under the hood is
modernized and updated or lacking a fresh coat of paint to dress up its
aesthetic look. If there's no showcase of some sort whether it's in the UI
or an added functionality, people will lose interest and will never return.
It's like stores and fast food restaurants. If they keep things looking like
the past and do not update and keep their sale items fresh, people will stop
coming and cause many of them to shutdown and disappear. Phenom was created
so that we can help the BBS community implement new ideas, pull in fresh
content, and to help them THRIVE.
How do you see the BBS scene going in the future? Is there a "turn" that
will bring new kids in BBSing?
(Stackfault) I don't think BBSes will ever be mainstream, they were not really
before the Internet. However I think it can become a great alternative for
privacy concerned people. In an era where every click made is captured,
analyzed and monetized, more people will be looking at such alternatives.
Since I got my Hacking and Security bot posting on ArakNet, I now read all my
news from the BBS itself. It create a leaner interface for news reading and I
have many users logging in daily to read their news the very same way. No more
advertisement to watch, or cluttered screen full of other non-relevant
information. You get to the point quickly and I've cut down my news reading
time by almost 50% just by doing it this way. We also need to create some kind
of an environment where it will be easy to exchange on any topic, allow free
speech and real collaborative initiatives to bloom and flourish. This
environment must be easy to connect and use, a nice and well designed
environment is also more susceptible to attract a larger audience, so art has
an important part to play. Art and BBSes walked hand in hand since the
beginning, we just need to find new paths to walk ontoâ¦
(NuSkooler) BBSes mainstream? Nah. I think that's the draw for a lot of
people, including new blood though. A lot of people have grown tired of the
corporate controlled mainstream social media driven web. Retro computing,
simplicity, and textmode especially have come back pretty big so of course
BBSing has a place in that space.
Do you think that making groups (in general... for ansi art, for mods
etc.) and bringing back the filling of "elitism" will give a push to the
Scene?
(Smooth) "Elitism" is a status that many of us strived to achieve 20+ years
ago. But we have all aged and our views have changed from the past. We're
all a bit older and have other things to worry about like work and family. The
exclusivity in what we do in art (ANSI, ASCII, PETSCII, etc...) or modding
groups is mainly for branding purposes these days. Art groups do it for the
sake of keeping the art alive. The Underground Art/BBS Scene has evolved and
changed drastically. It's a much smaller community then what it once was.
Many of us had the privilege and opportunity to experience the underground art
scene whether it pertained to the ANSI/ASCII, Demoscene, warez scene, or the
HPCAV scene. But things began to crumble once the internet peeked through
slowly introducing the dial-up BBS community to a different high-speed
communication space. Many of us were in college and soon to become adults
with family and became busy with work. There was no time to draw colored
blocks, and priorities changed when BBS hobbies became less important. Modding
groups and Art groups revolved around "The Scene" in those days. Art packs
and Mods were never a part of the Public Domain realm back then. They
originated from "The Scene". Mods and Art packs were mostly delivered to
"Scene boards". That's what made it ELITE as it was exclusive back then.
But today art packs and mods are totally public. We deliver our mod packs
first to Araknet many of us in Phenom are in ArakNet and we all share the love
of modding our boards and to adorn it with great art. "The Scene" is what
drew amazing artists to create great masterpieces for BBSes, it also produced
top quality modders that broke ground in the out of the box features of a
bulletin board software. We're all just trying do our part to continue the
legacy and to start an interest by newcomers to be a part of the evolution of
"The Scene" either in art or modding for BBS systems to come.
if someone wants to get into Phenom, what does he have to know? does he
have to be a guru in some programming language? an artist? good to writing
Docs?
(Smooth) Any member of Phenom can refer a new prospect to be a team member. If
someone decides to fill out the member application that was included in any of
our releases, I'm usually the one to receive them via email. I usually manage
the team roster as I'm the one to update the website and infopacks. I'll
usually try to get 1 or 2 other members to vouch for an applicant, but if
he/she seems to be a viable resource for developing mods for a specific BBS
platform that's not currently part of our team's repertoire they're usually
an easy shoe in. We've never really turned down any applications. Everyone
that has joined Phenom have very helpful to one another and brings a special
skill to the table. They're either supporting each other with their coding
prowess or by their resourcefulness in finding a solution to their problem.
Are you in need of programmers, modders, artists?
(Ktulu) We are always looking to grow our team. Anyone can join. There's no
membership restrictions. Artist from all art groups are always welcome to
provide art. We're always wanting the best art for our mods. Any art is
fully appreciated. We credit all members and contributors in all of our mod
releases. We continually look for great talent. There are more BBSes that
we strive to create mods for. There are more undiscovered talent that we'd
like to be a part of our team.
(NuSkooler) Personally, I'm always looking for coders and artists that can
contribute to generalized BBS modding and pushing things forward while still
remaining "retro". ENiGMA 1/2 BBS software being a "new kid" on the block
means there is a lot of room for new mods and tech.
Whats your competition? acidic? do you think that the feeling of
competition with others would bring "life" to the scene?
(Smooth) Competition brings out the best in everyone. There are other groups
and individual out there that are producing great BBS products. Groups such
as DORE, ACiDiC, Demonic Productions are still out there churning out mods.
Programmers such as Gryphon and XQTR are also pumping modern day Mystic mods
which progressively helps out the BBS community as a whole. We invite
competition as it helps us to grow in our knowledge and be humbled by the
fact that there are many ideas and concepts that we haven't thought of. It's
this competition that inspires us to break new ground.
What are your plans? i see that you are making some good stuff like mods,
door games and helping with BBS software. are you going to keep it like
that? or have something bigger in your mind... perhaps a new BBS software?
(Smooth) We are definitely working hard to innovate and to introduce fresh new
modern ideas that stand apart from mods and doors of the past. Our team are
constantly discussing ideas and how to improve each other's project. Is a new
BBS software in line with our future endeavors? It sure is, but keep your ear
close to the ground as we stampede through and distribute more goodies for
everyone to enjoy.
Who's the head of phenom? or you work collectively? how do you get the
decisions on what to make or everyone is independent and do their own stuff,
in a way? who's in charge? :)
(Smooth) No one really dictates what the team should or should not work on.
So there is no true head of Phenom. We all do our part to assist one another
in releasing new Phenom products. Whether we're beta-testing and providing
bug reports or feedback on features, advising one another on how to improve
performance or refactoring of code, to just pure encouragement when any of us
run into roadblocks with our code or creative blocks when designing the
graphics or UI to our mods or doors. Many of us work on personal projects but
we all support one another as a family and as a true team of programmers and
artists.
What tools do you use? as i read in your website, each one has a different
background of knowledge, but in general what's the "every day tools" you
use for programming or art making?
(Stackfault) Personally, the tool I use the most is an highly customized
configuration of vim (yes, the brutal text editor everyone hates). I use it
for everything, code, mail editor, note taking, src diff, etc. The learning
curve can be pretty steep but once you gave it an hour a day for a couple
weeks, you never go back. I work almost exclusively on Linux with a tile
manager instead of an heavy DE like Gnome or KDE and I prefer console tools
as much as possible. It must be related to my love for minimalism. I also
create many tools to help me with my workflow. Most of them are never
published but this might change in the future with Phenom helping with the
release work.
(Smooth and Anachronist) We also provide art for Phenom. Our most common
everyday tool to produce ANSI or ASCII art is PabloDraw.
(Smooth, Ktulu and Cr1mson) We do most of our code creation and builds in
Visual Studio.
(NuSkooler) Tools depend on the job. For ANSI art I'm generally in PabloDraw.
When it comes to coding I prefer Visual Studio Code which is an amazing
multi-platform environment though I do 99.9% of my work under Linux.
(pequito) Depends, for mystic I just use Mystic Programming Language (pascal)
other projects I do use Visual Studio along with Sublime 3 Text as primary
editors. As for art, I do love both pablow draw and the draw for when I need
to limit how many rows for a screen.
In the last issue Nuskooler wrote something that really make a sense to
me, but didn't have realized it yet.. he wrote:
# "I think the ANSI scene was very tied to the warez and BBS scenes back
# in the day, but these days they are separate scenes that happen to
# overlap a lot. ANSI is done for the love of the art, not scene cred
# these days, and that's a very good thing."
Do you agree? is the ansi art scene something independent nowadays? should
be? perhaps this is making boards to be less interesting?
(Smooth) It is somewhat independent. Most of the current artists are veterans
of the past who have matured their techniques and style to something more
current and refined. Most of us artists have different priorities today so a
lot of us create ansi for the love of the art. The ANSI masters have already
earned their scene cred and really don't have much to prove to the public.
Sysops of today should realize this fact and should adapt accordingly if they
want art for their boards. When we were younger and had something to prove
we would churn out ansis left and right to gain respect and admiration from
other artists and groups. Art was in abundance and artists were hungry to
design new works month after month. Our time is much more precious today
then it was in the past. Our spare time is limited outside of work and family
life. The local groups in each area are non-existent. Only the best artists
who decided to come back are around and it does come at a cost. ANSI art of
today are all masterpieces which should be valued and appreciated as such.
Sysops should not be reluctant to pay for this service or at least have
something for trade to make it worth an artist's time. A simple advertisement
on your board or acknowledgement of the artists that helped to improve the
look of your BBS could also show your appreciation. This will ensure the
continual production of new art by existing artists.
From your perspective, what is it, that makes a "good" BBS? Is it the ANSI
art? the scripts/mods?
(Stackfault) I think it's the care you put into it, trying to bring
innovation, create original content, add value to your board but also to the
community, interact with your users and listen to their comments, get them
involved and help them participate. Create a unique environment, to your
image, express your creativity and improve, become a better artist, coder,
sysop, person...
Do you have any advices for a new Sysop? What he should be aware of?
(cr1mson) Have a stable computer system that is reliant and able to handle
the load of incoming traffic. I suggest having a BBS on a dedicated machine
or server that is online and able to access at least 80-90% of the time, if
not more. The more reliable your system is able to be access, the more you'll
be able to accept incoming calls. Pick BBS software package that you're going
to stick with, that you'll enjoy working with and maintain. Provide *new*
content. Don't run a stock BBS or a BBS that has what every other BBS have.
Provide something unique and is appetizing to others. If you enjoy it and are
passionate about running a BBS, others will see that and be drawn to you.
Monitor it and keep it up-to-date. Don't let it get stale. I suggest have a
theme that interests you most and stick with it. Having a system that isn't
stable, reliant and unable to handle traffic will drive people *away* from
you. Be positive, focus on the common goal of providing to the BBS community.
(NuSkooler) If you're to load up a board, no matter what software you choose,
don't even bother announcing it until it's "out of the box" feel is gone or a
lot of people like myself will probably never return.
(pequito) For me it has to be flexible and changeable from the pre-packed to
what I would want it to become for my own use or system in use.
Lately we read more and more about security and privacy on the net. hacks,
facebook, twitter etc. do you have any ideas on making BBSes a "safe
place" for free/secure communication? is it possible?
(Stackfault) I think there are several ways BBSes can learn from these more
recent security issues affecting the industry in general. Encrypted
communication like SSH and TLS along with strong password algorithms like
PBKDF2 are a very good start. Care also needs to be taken when expanding the
BBS platforms to other non-terminal protocols. HTTP for example is probably
the largest target for hostile vulnerability scanning on the Internet. Special
care must be taken to keep these systems as secure as possible in order to
offer a serious privacy alternative.
(NuSkooler) A lot has changed since the days of POTS and even Telnet. These
days various entities are in fact monitoring and data mining your
communications as much as possible. As such, various best practices
(and general no-no's) have been established and are fairly well known albeit
not always well implemented. Plain text protocols, storing passwords in plain
text, etc. are in the list. A push is starting to be seen with boards and
clients supporting TLS, storing passwords in irreversible forms such as
PBKDF2, and so on are a good start. But there is a lot to do. Look at TLS/SSL
and SSH for example: There are many flavors and some are considered very weak.
I had to drastically tone down ENiGMA 1/2s SSH cipher suite due to popular
clients only supporting older ciphers. I still see a lot of "roll your own"
crypto going on as well where something may seem secure, but in reality it's
not. Then of course we're still sending most Echo/NetMail in plain text as
well. While I'm happy to see authors try to secure these communications, a
more RFC-type approach where security can be reviewed and made available to
multiple systems would help a lot more (and of course, this means receiving
criticism without taking it personally!)
As a group? what is it, that you think that was making the old days of
BBSing great? was it the groups? the elitism? the art packs?
warez/material/content? ;)
(cr1mson) Community. Back in the day we had teleconferencing. BBS had and
still have the ability to have live party line conversations. What made it
unique is that a lot of the old days BBS were local based within your own
town/city. People could have get-togethers, parties, etc. It actually took
a lot of work for the SysOp to run their system and there were a lot more
caller than SysOp ratio back then. A second phone line and long distance
calling costed an enormous amount of money and people had to depend on a
BBS/SysOp to provide service. Sure, it was a lot slower, but it was
fantasizing to get on a computer, connect with a BBS, start talking, share
messages, exchange files. For a time, having a 10-line system was rare.
Since the internet became viral, I've seen more and more BBS shut down and
focus their attention on social media or simply just start their own stock
BBS, not really setting themselves different from other systems. Sometimes,
it's hit and miss with BBSes. One might be more popular than another, due to
the content, the attitude of the SysOp, the user base, the networks they
provide, the affiliations they have, how soon a new file comes in...all these
factors play in the role of running a successful BBS. A balance I feel is key
to getting this all done while maintaining a quality system.
(NuSkooler) Back in the day I think there was a new frontier that the general
masses were not aware of. Being part of that wave was always a thrill. HPAVC
is how a lot of us got our starts in security & programming as well.
SAUCE00 20190217éI P 9 IBM VGA 
