A new computing resource is now available for students, faculty, and
administrators at SRJC.  The system is the result of my CIS 49 project,
entitled: "Mainframe System Programming, Management, and Networking."

This system -- called "Nermal," after a character in the popular comic strip,
"Garfield" -- can provide many services that were previously unavailable to
students.  They include electronic mail; participation in Usenet, a worldwide
conferencing system; file transfer abilities from Internet public-domain
archives; and easy access to library catalogues and information services from
hundreds of Universities.

Here are some particulars of the system.

Hardware:
     All of Nermal's hardware was gathered from Computing Services spare
     parts, with the understanding that the hardware might be reallocated at
     any time.

Software:
     All of Nermal's software is publicly available as "freeware" -- there
     are no licensing fees required for any of Nermal's software, including
     the multiuser, multitasking operating system.

Databases:
     All of Nermal's databases are publicly available, and there are no
     licensing fees for their use.  They include "The Hitchhiker's Guide to
     the Internet," "The CIA World Factbook," "Zen and the Art of Internet,"
     and introductions to UNIX from two institutions:  Rutgers University and
     the University of Texas, Austin.

Connection information:
     Nermal has a single dialup line, available at 527-4888.  Use 8 data
     bits, 1 stop bit, no parity, and a vt100 emulation for best results. 
     Note that you may get a busy signal -- Nermal has many modems available,
     but only one phone line.

     To connect to Nermal over the network, use a telnet client.  The network
     version of Reflection can do this, as well as many public-domain
     clients.  Nermal's fully-qualified Internet domain name is
     "nermal.santarosa.edu."

     Nermal will occasionally refuse telnet connections.  Usually, this is
     due to lack of system resources -- with its current configuration,
     Nermal can handle between 4 and 6 simultaneous user connections.

     The reader will need an account before connection.  Mail account
     requests to Dave Johnston or myself.  (A method for generating account
     requests on Nermal is currently under development.)

Conclusion:

The reader may be familiar with electronic bulletin-board systems, or
"BBS's."  Please note that Nermal is not a BBS.

Nermal *is* a microcomputer running a mainframe-like operating system, which
is functionally similar to UNIX.  Indeed, many UNIX applications will run on
this system with little or no modification.

I maintain a mailing list for promulgation of news and developments related
to the Nermal project.  Please email me if you would like to be added to the
list.

I'm grateful for the assistance and resources provided by Computing Services
and the Computers and Information Science department -- without their help,
this project would not have been possible.

Sincerely Yours,

Scott Doty
<scott@cs.santarosa.edu>