The Agricultural Library Forum (ALF) is an electronic bulletin
board system (BBS) operated by the National Agricultural Library
(NAL) of the USDA.
ALF is a convenient, economical tool for electronically accessing
information about NAL'S programs, projects, products and services.
It provides a forum for exchanging information among agricultural
libraries, information centers and others in the agricultural
field.
ALF is open to anyone. The board is accessible 24 hours a day, 7
days a week. The system is down for approximately 15 minutes each
weekday morning for system maintenance.
NAL welcomes all contributions, suggestions and ideas for making
this bulletin board a successful working and learning tool for its
users. Callers are encouraged to donate programs, and other files
of interest, to the agricultural community. However, all files
donated must contain only information that is in the PUBLIC DOMAIN.
Neither the SYSOPS not NAL is responsible for any of the data that
is shared on this BBS.
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>From kschneid@nalusda.gov Fri Sep 10 09:04:25 1993
Date: Fri, 10 Sep 1993 07:42:22 -0400 (EDT)
From: Karl Schneider <kschneid@nalusda.gov>
Subject: ALF from the Internet
To: nalusers@nalusda.gov
NEWS FLASH - Colorado Springs - "ALF FROM THE INTERNET"
...the FedWorld folks announced that Telnet access to the FedWorld
bbs (dial 703/321-8020) was now in operation. You may use the
command "telnet fedworld.doc.gov" from your telnet compatible
Internet host site to establish contact with this Department of
Commerce (NTIS) information and gateway service.
Connection to ALF, one of more than one hundred federal bbs systems
accessible from FedWorld's Gateway, after a Telnet link to FedWorld
has been tested since the NTIS announcement in Colorado Springs.
Login to FedWorld for the first time requires a user to register on
FedWorld, then access the Gateway system via the "D" command from
the main conference. Entry of another "D" brings up the list of
federal systems for selection. Enter "2" to select ALF. After the
first registration, a user may enter "D D 2" to make an immediate
link to ALF from the main FedWorld menu.
Successful download of ALF files via telnet to FedWorld requires
the use of either Kermit (for non-ascii program or compressed
files) or ascii for text files for transfer from ALF to your
Internet access account files area, or to your pc, if linked
through Cliff via a modem.
Direct modem-to-modem dial-up access to FedWorld supports ALF
connection via the gateway. Remember also that the ALF bbs lists
a number of other ag-related dial-up bulletin boards in the M)ain
section's Bulletin #25. Several new entries have been added in the
last few months.
The FedWorld system runs on a bbs software platform called the
Major bbs, by Galacticomm. More than sixty incoming lines are
available. For technical assistance with FedWorld, call
703/487-4608.