ksj7i@dale.acc.Virginia.EDU (Kenneth S. Johnson) (03/29/90)
Has anyone besides myself ever had problems getting a SYSOP-registered
copy of DSZ from Chuck Forsberg? For those who don't know what I'm talking
about, some background...
Chuck Forsberg (d/b/a Omen Technologies), is the author of a
shareware package called DSZ. DSZ is the driver used on 99% of all
BBS's to implement high-efficiency file transfer protocols. It's a fine
product, and is carefully and continuously maintained by Mr. Forsberg,
who is obviously a programmer without peer. I find fault not with his
skill, but with his attitude.
Chuck's package is basically useless unless "registered", since
registration is the only way to legally enable most of the useful
features of the program. Registration costs the normal user $20.00.
Sysops of public BBS systems can register DSZ for use on their
systems by filling out a very complex form and having someone include the
form with a paid registration. Such registration, unlike registration
for a normal user, entails compliance with several additional conditions,
including but not limited to:
1) Featuring ZCOMM (a communications package written by Forsberg, of
which DSZ is a subset) on my BBS, and promoting it in any texts
that discuss communications software. This means that whether or
not I LIKE ZCOMM, I MUST hawk it and praise it if I want to use
DSZ on my board.
2) Playing "software cop" -- if I see an illegal or altered DSZ or
ZCOMM on another board, or even an outdated one, I MUST upload
the latest, good copy and see that the old one is removed. I am
in effect required to monitor other SYSOPs.
About six weeks ago, against my better judgement, I decided to
agree to these restrictions and sent my registration form to one of my
users, who included it with his paid registration. About two weeks later,
he received his registered copy of DSZ. I received nothing.
I made several calls to Chuck's TeleGodzilla BBS, asking about the
status of my copy; there were no replies to any of my messages. I left
three messages, five days apart, on Chuck's answering machine (voice),
inviting him to return my call COLLECT. There was still no reply. I
finally managed to catch him at home one afternoon, and asked him again
where my DSZ was. He replied that although he sends out paid copies of
DSZ as requests are received, SYSOP-registered copies are sent out with
the next release of DSZ. His reasoning was that since SYSOP copies are
unpaid, he shouldn't expend a great deal of extra effort dealing with
them. He promised that it would be sent within the next month or so,
and for the moment I accepted this.
A month later (last week), two new releases of DSZ had appeared
on local boards, and there was still no sign of my registered copy.
Frustrated, I made another call to Chuck. He said that they were still
trying to "get the mailing out", but they "had to get through our taxes
first". I asked very politely how much longer I would have to wait. He
replied, in an annoyed tone, "It depends on how long I have to sit here
with the phone off the hook!" I couldn't believe my ears, so I gave him
a second chance - I said, "Huh?" He again said "We hope within a month
or so."
By this time, I was quite thoroughly frustrated. I could
understand that perhaps he couldn't afford to mail out a copy on a disk,
since taxes sometimes hit me pretty hard, too. I asked if he could
simply let me download the registered version, or if he could at least
give me the registration (serial) number over the phone so that I could
register the latest version. His reply?
"Well, you can download the unregistered version from TeleGodzilla,
but the SYSOP serial number will have to go through the mail."
Why does Chuck wave this carrot in front of us, then take forever
to deliver what he's promised? I can't begin to guess his motive here.
In any case, I think it shows incredible gall for him to cold-shoulder
the very people (SYSOPs) who are 99.9% responsible for the widespread
distribution and acceptance of his DSZ and ZCOMM products. His software
would not be nearly as popular as it is today if it were not for SYSOPS'
recognition of its quality and value to the telecommunications community.
Yet, to Chuck, we're quite obviously an annoyance, an interruption of his
work. He clearly thinks of us as miserable second-class freeloaders who
are unworthy of even his normal level of customer service.
If DSZ were not such an indispensible and irreplaceable asset to
my board, I'd simply never deal with Forsberg again. However, I NEED
his package because I am unwilling to compromise the quality of my system
or inconvenience my users unduly. That's why I'm posting this message.
Has any other SYSOP who might be reading here had this same problem?
Have you had a similar problem? I'd love to hear about it. Please send me
email describing your difficulty, gripe, or quarrel with Chuck. I'll combine
these into a single post, and send them to Omen Technologies (posting a copy
here, of course).
My address is ksj7i@virginia.edu, in case our flaky poster decides not to
include my .signature file this time.
Should you desire to contact him directly, Chuck Forsberg can be reached at:
Omen Technology Incorporated
17505-V NW Sauvie Island Road
Portland OR 97231
TeleGodzilla BBS: 503-621-3746 (1200,2400,19200Telebit)
FAX: 503-621-3735
CompuServe:70007,2304
GEnie:CAF
UUCP: ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf
Voice: (503) 621-3406
Scott Johnson, SYSOP
CAVU BBS
-----
K. Scott Johnson (ksj7i@virginia.edu)
Ma Bell: (804) 971-9169 / (804) 977-3030
USnail: P.O. Box 2422 / Charlottesville, VA 22902