The Sun Coast Freenet Do you have an older computer, and still want to be able to send and receive mail at no cost? Do you like to learn fascinating, yet exotic new ways of computing?

Well there is a way that all this can be done. It's called the Sun Coast Freenet. I know many of you have already heard of it, but how many people really know what it's all about?

Sun Coast Freenet, or SCFN for short, is a free service of the Tampa/Hillsborough County library system. Once you register (which by the way, is free to the residents of Hillsborough County), you are able to log on, and, through using 'lynx', a text based browser, you can go to all of the numerous links they have on the system. You are also provided an Email account, and through PINE, the Email program, you can check your mail, manage folders, and go to thousands of varying newsgroups.

The main problem most people will encounter is the non-graphical interface that lynx uses. SCFN uses an operating system called UNIX. I'll get to that later on.

Once logged on, you see a non-flattering splash screen come up. From there, you are prompted to enter your 'logon name' and 'password'. Unless you opt to pay an extra fee, the system will provide you with both a name and a password; these can be very arcane, so please write them down. A typical user name and password for example would be something like tw45wwx.

If all this hasn't scared you away by now, then read on, and I'll explain many of the other features of the system.

UNIX Some of you might be saying "What's this UNIX stuff I keep hearing about?" UNIX is an operating system, just like Windows. Well, not just like Windows, but an operating system nonetheless. It was developed by AT&T in the late 60's and is still in wide use today. Many companies' computer networks run on UNIX, and the telephone networks use routers and computer systems running UNIX. As a matter of fact, 90 percent of all web servers use it.

So, if it's so powerful and widespread, why aren't we all using it? Well, mainly because it's a very difficult and unforgiving operating system to use. But I know people who use it exclusively, and they haven't had to reboot in over a year! It's pretty stable.

With that brief description done with, I'll move on to navigating the system.

Everything you do on SCFN is done with numbered links. You can either enter the link number, or move the highlighted bar under the link and hit enter. The type of link is also included in brackets next to it. This tells you whether it's a GIF, JPEG, or some other type of embedded file. What we're interested in is links. Once you choose the link you want to go to, you'll see a status bar at the bottom of the screen. It's similar to that of Netscape or Microsoft except it's text. Once it's fetched the page, you can browse through it, either by hitting the space bar to move down a page, or using the page down button. One of the things that is confusing is that every time you move down a page, the screen refreshes itself and writes over the current text. You cannot scroll back; you might if you have a terminal that can do so, but I use hyperterm, and when I scroll back, I get garbage. There's a help section with SCFN that helps you configure your terminal. This bring us to the (J)ump command.

You can jump to any part or section of the freenet system, with the exception of when you’re in PINE, by using the 'J' command. When you hit this key, a message will appear at the bottom of the screen asking to input a keyword. As mentioned earlier, you can find help on configuring your terminal software by hitting 'J', then entering "commhelp" without the parentheses.

There's also a way to bookmark sites that you visit on freenet. This can be done by pressing "a", then choosing 'link' or 'document'. This will add either a link or document to your bookmark list. You can view your bookmarks whenever you want, by pressing "v" and then choosing the link of your choice.

I realize most of this seems very confusing and esoteric, but as a free alternative to an ISP, this might be your best bet.

There's a ton of other quirks and tricks associated with SCFN, but there are way too many to mention.

This is a close approximation of what the system is really like. You can also view many of the help files mentioned, so you won't be ill prepared when you do sign on.

I hope this article has helped you learn more about the freenet and the many features it has to offer.

• Arrow Keys - Up and down arrows allow you to move up and down on a page. The left arrow allows you to return to a previous page. The right arrow (or the [enter] key) allows you to enter a highlighted link.
• H)elp - Calls up an extensive online help guide regarding the use of Lynx. Tap the left arrow key to return to previous page.
• O)ptions - Presents a menu of variables the user can change. Tap r to return to Lynx.
• P)rint - Provides user with various print options.
• M)ain Menu - Returns you to the SCFN Main Menu.
• Q)uit - Quits the Suncoast Free-Net.
• J)ump to menu - Using the abbreviations in the top right corner of most screens you visit (menu=shortcuts). For example, tap j, type help and tap [enter]. This calls up SCFN help.
• [ / ] Search - Locate a word/phrase within the current document.
• [delete] History List - Shows a list of sites you have visited. u