astronomy

ISCABBS

ISCABBS is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand ISCABBS rather than just read about it. In short: ISCABBS, also known as ISCA, is a computer bulletin board system ("BBS"), formerly based at the University of Iowa. "Daves' own version of Citadel" (DOC), an early branch of the Citadel/UX BBS software, was developed to run ISCA. Like most Citadels, the focus is almost entirely on conversation among users.

Key takeaways

ISCABBS belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect ISCABBS to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of ISCABBS from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

ISCABBS, also known as ISCA, is a computer bulletin board system ("BBS"), formerly based at the University of Iowa. "Daves' own version of Citadel" (DOC), an early branch of the Citadel/UX BBS software, was developed to run ISCA. Like most Citadels, the focus is almost entirely on conversation among users.

History Governed by, and named for the Iowa Student Computer Association (ISCA), ISCABBS was started in 1989. Previously a computer conferencing software program entitled "Participate" made by Unison (Iowa students referred to it as "Parti") resided on the University of Iowa's Prime mainframe computer (running the Primos operating system) and was accessible to all University students.

Precursors Many of the Parti users had migrated over from a student created BBS called BBS1 (circa 1985) which was accessed from its creator's personal account "astran" on the University of Iowa mainframe computer PrimeA. BBS1 was created and administered by Randy Frank (Mr Nybble) and David Richards (The Oracle) after they realized the popularity of their games and the hidden messaging system that was available from within the games. The original message system was concealed inside their "Draw Poker" game and allowed the creators the ability to convey progress and leave notes regarding current projects. The board was promoted across campus on flyers placed in computer labs. Users took on handles and developed a culture of their own with socialization being the main use of the board. A BBS1 user group was started and held infrequent meetings and offered T-shirts with a mystical picture and the caption "BBS1: A meeting of the minds". The software eventually was altered and passed around by a rogue sysop in a version known as "STEALTH" which could be compiled and executed on a user's own personal account. The main message system files were no longer safe or private once the general user population learned the directory names. The anonymity of a handle was proven to be non-existent and the cracked software allowed anybody to read any file they chose and track users back to their originating personal accounts.

DOC creation Several student programmers began to create an improved code using the Citadel framework. As several developers were named "Dave" - including two key developers of the early software - it was coined "Dave's own version of " or "DOC" (Note: Often, this has been written "Daves' own version..." to note the plurality of Daves involved in the project). The Daves include the project leader "Doctor Dave" Lacey, who is now an M.D., and Dave "Screaming Fist" Nelson. Originally ISCABBS was run on the University of Iowa's Engineering Departments Iowa Computer Aided Engineering Network "ICAEN" and accessible only by engineering students. However, ISCABBS was soon made available to all University of Iowa students and then to anyone with an internet connection. In addition to the BBS, a file sharing system was made available for freeware and shareware, and at one point was one of the most popular repositories in the Simtel file distribution network.

Peak of popularity At its peak just before the rise of the World Wide Web, it supported more than a thousand users online simultaneously and a virtual velvet-roped queue in which hundreds more waited to log in when the system was very busy. The popularity of ISCA as a meeting place, hangout, and occasionally a virtual dive bar gives a glimpse of what modern day chat rooms would become. Between serious discussion on topics ranging from social issues and politics to computer and home repair, lighthearted babble about almost any topic can be found. In addition, instant messaging (called eXpress Messages - or simply Xes - in the lingo of DOC BBSes and other citadel-derived systems) provides a venue for private discussion and conversation. Before the rise of the Web, ISCABBS was one of the largest free public bulletin board systems in the world. It continues on today as a likely candidate for the most active telnet-based BBS in the world.

Moving to new software At one point the BBS was poised to cut over to a new platform called Gestalt. It was a project developed almost entirely by Lee Brintle (also known as "Tanj"), an ISCA member and former BBS Sysop. ISCA (the Iowa Student Computer Association) was offered free license to use this new BBS platform which offered not only integration with the old BBS platform but also enabled developers to construct instant messaging, email, and web-based interfaces to the BBS, much like many modern messageboards have today. The cutover was scheduled for "sometime in 1998" and would have enabled the BBS to very easily run on commodity hardware (Intel PCs) rather than expensive, proprietary, and increasingly hard-to-obtain HP workstations. Conflicts over licensing terms, ownership, and other interpersonal issues caused the cutover to Gestalt to never happen. As of September 23, 2014, ISCA was permanently migrated over to a Linux-based virtual when the original system exhibited some issues. Most of the functionality remains identical with a few changes, such as adding eXpress message retention, and removing delays during registration and idle account deletions.

Moving away from the University of Iowa The ISCA student group created a non-profit corporation (Iowa Student Computing Alumni) and separated from the University of Iowa on December 16, 2006. The domain name has been changed to bbs.iscabbs.com from bbs.isca.uiowa.edu.

Infrastructure ISCABBS originally supported over a thousand simultaneous users on a 50 MHz PA-RISC system with 64MB of RAM, which ran HP-UX. In later years, the system was upgraded to an 80 MHz processor and 128MB of RAM, though the active user base is much smaller. Connectivity was provided by the University of Iowa. Due to the popularity of the BBS and its limited resources, much effort went into shrinking the size of the BBS process in memory. Stripped-down versions of standard libraries were written that included only the handful of functions that the BBS required to operate. When ISCA separated from the University of Iowa to become its own non-profit organization, the BBS was moved to a new co-location hosting facility in Iowa City, Iowa. ISCABBS ran on an HP Visualize model B132L workstation, with a 132 MHz processor, 192 MB of RAM, and two 2 GB SCSI disks. However, as noted above, it has now migrated to a Linux virtual hosted by user Chris Gauthier (Copper Lethe).

Features

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with ISCABBS

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what ISCABBS claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to ISCABBS before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about ISCABBS ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of ISCABBS

In research: ISCABBS appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses ISCABBS in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: ISCABBS is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1989 establishments in Iowa, Bulletin board systems, Iowa City, Iowa, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for ISCABBS outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study ISCABBS in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what ISCABBS means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain ISCABBS out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is ISCABBS in simple terms?

Why does ISCABBS matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study ISCABBS?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on ISCABBS.