(Note: as of 1.24 I added fields to indicate V.34, v.FC "Terbo" class modems and ISDN services. Please let me know if I should update your listings!)
This is a listing of Chicago area sites that offer email accounts for new users, and uucp/highspeed news and mail accounts for new machines, maintained by blair@obdient.chi.il.us and published bimonthly in chi.mail. This list includes only sites accepting new accounts. If you would like your site to be included or to update this information please email blair@obdient.chi.il.us.
If you have access to the 'gopher' internet information retreival program, you may obtain the latest versions of this document and other helpful Chicago area internet provider lists. From the unix command line type: 'gopher gopher.ripco.com, or as a link from a WWW client (World Wide Web or Mosaic) type: URL: gopher://gopher.ripco.com:70/11/providers. This list may also be retreived/stored under various other URL's, but this one I know works.
This listing is organized by County and includes a special section for the City of Chicago. Each site entry contains:
1) Site name eg: garbanzo.domain.country
2) Address to which you can send mail for more information,
eg: root@site.domain.country
3) Voice phone number you can call for more information
4) Data number you can call if the site accepts public logins
or has a script that will accept new users. Note that
most sites have many numbers; the main one is listed
so you may determine how expensive the call will be.
5) Services field: a character for each of (M)ail, Usenet (N)ews,
(I)nternet "live" connection, (D)ownloadable programs,
(U)ucp mail & newsfeeds, (S)LIP mail & newsfeeds, and
(L)eased lines available. The first 4 of these (MNID)
apply to new individual accounts and the last 3 (USL)
apply to new connections for machines. The first 4 mean
that you will need to establish an account on a machine at
that site and dial in to that site to use your account.
The last 3 mean that you can connect your computer to that
site to transfer files (uucp) or to directly access the
internet on a temporary (slip/ppp) or permanant (leased) basis.
The "F", "$" and "-" represent (F)ree service, ($) charge
service and (-) unavailable service at this site. A "?"
means my information is incomplete.
6) Modem field: (1)=1200, (2)=2400, (9)=9600 V.32, (4)=14400 V.32/
V.42 bis, (H)=USRobotics HST Protocol, (P)=Telebit PEP
Protocol, (F)=V.34/V.FC "Terbo", (S)=Site may be reached
via ISDN, (I)=Site has a live Internet connection
7) Operating system environment (Unix, BBS, Amiga, VMS, etc)
For the services field the (M)ail flag means that the site offers a type of account that can send and receive plain text email messages with addresses of the form username@sitename.domain and display these to you. No other utility (such as word processing or uuencoding) is required for this flag.
For the services and modem fields the (I)nternet flag means that this site has a permanently configured 56K (or faster) dedicated line connection to its internet provider, or that the company is an internet service provider.
Site Info Voice Data Service Modems OS
Name Address Phone Phone MNIDUSL 1294HPFSI Type
--------------- ------- --------------- ------------- ------- --------- ----
City Of Chicago
===============
mcs.com info 312-BIT-UNIX 312-248-0900 F$$$$$$ 1294-PFSI Unix
leftside.com squid Private 312-637-5659 F$-$--- 1294--F-- BBS
hbbs.mcs.com sysop Private 312-868-1681 FF-FF-- 1294----- BBS
infochi.com support 312-889-7724 312-889-5396 $$$$??? -294--??I Unix
interaccess.com help 800-967-1580 708-671-0237* $$$$$$$ 1294--F?I Unix
interaccess.com help 800-967-1580 312-705-6633 $$$$$$$ 1294--F?I Unix
ripco.com info 312-477-6210 312-665-0065 FF$F-?? 1294--??I Unix
tezcat.com info 312-850-0181 312-850-0112 $$$$-$$ 1294H-F-I Unix
wwa.com info 708-367-1870 312-233-9957 $$$$$$$ 1294--F-I Unix
wwa.com info 708-367-1870 312-282-8605 $$$$$$$ 1294--F-I Unix
*in city of Chicago but served from Schiller Park phone switch
Cook County outside Chicago
===========================
ais.net info 708-413-8400 708-413-1111 $$$$$$$ 1294--FSI Unix
interaccess.com info 800-967-1580 708-498-3960 $$$$$$$ 1294--??I Unix
interaccess.com info 800-967-1580 708-532-9472 $$$$$$$ 1294---?I Unix
interaccess.com info 800-967-1580 708-885-3123 $$$$$$$ 1294---?I Unix
mcs.com info 312-BIT-UNIX 708-385-0997 F$$$$$$ 1294-PF-I Unix
mcs.com info 312-BIT-UNIX 708-413-8450 F$$$$$$ 1294--F-I Unix
mcs.com info 312-BIT-UNIX 708-465-0990 F$$$$$$ 1294-PF-I Unix
ocular.com info 708-299-1291 708-299-0687 FF-F--- 1294H-F-- BBS
sandv.chi.il.us mithelen 708-579-1314 708-352-0948 FF-F$-- 1294----- Unix
stephsf.com postmaster 708-776-0286 Private ---FF-- --94-P--- Unix
ttd1.ttd.teradyne.com nichols 708-940-9000 Private ----F-- -29--P--I Unix
xnet.com info 708-983-6064 708-882-1101 F$$$$$$ 1294--F-I Unix
viking.chi.il.us sysop Private 708-491-9036 FF----- 1294----- BBS
DuPage County
=============
grayfox.svs.com ken 708-983-5240 708-983-5147 $$$$$-$ 1294HP??I Unix
interaccess.com info 800-967-1580 708-716-6633 $$$$$$$ 1294--F?I Unix
mcs.com info 312-BIT-UNIX 708-637-0900 F$$$$$$ 1294-PF-I Unix
obdient.chi.il.us blair 708-527-8899 Private ----F-- 1294-P--- Unix
wa9aek.chi.il.us ken 708-983-5240 708-983-6693 $--$$-- 1294HP--- Unix
vpnet.chi.il.us info 708-833-8122 708-833-8126 FF--$-- 1294--F-- Unix
xnet.com info 708-983-6064 708-983-6435 F$$$$$$ 1294-PF-I Unix
Kane County
===========
mcs.com info 312-BIT-UNIX 708-262-0900 F$$$$$$ 1294-PF-I Unix
simon.chi.il.us info 708-513-6921 708-513-6922 $--F?-- 1294-P--- Unix
unixuser.chi.il.us info 708-840-8043 708-208-5980 $F-F?-- 1294----- BBS
Lake County, Illinois
=====================
pshrink.chi.il.us info 708-487-5464 708-487-9727 FF--F-- 1294----- Unix
wwa.com info 708-367-1870 708-367-1871 $$$$$$$ 1294--F-I Unix
Lake County, Indiana
====================
Will County
===========
kiss.chi.il.us n9bh Private 815-436-7181 F---?-- 129----- Unix
Chicago area local telephone service is provided by Ameritech and Centel. There are no "free" calls included with residential phone service. Calls within an (aproximate) 8 mile radius are untimed and cost about a nickel. Timed rates apply to calls in 8-15 mile, 15-40 mile and greater than 40 mile zones in the Northeast Illinois LATA.
Electronic mail addresses of the form "username@sitename.domain" or "username@subdomain.subdomain.domain" are known as Fully Qualified Domain Names. The use of FQDN's means that your mail will be routed correctly and directly as soon as it reaches a smart host or internet site. Generally speaking, bang-path addressing (sitename!site2!site3!user) can be counted on to work only on locally connected networks or short hop uucp paths. Please use a domain style address when mailing to one of the sites above from outside the Chicago area.
Many of the sites listed above are members of the .chi.il.us mail domain, the email project of Uniforum Chicago, often referred to as the Clout Project. This is administered by a group of volunteer computer professionals. Joining this (or any) domain will allow your computer site to use internet style addressing, but you must still arrange a uucp, SLIP or similar connection between your machine and an internet host. For information about the Clout Project email to postmaster@clout.chi.il.us. For information about uucp connections and internet hosts email the addresses listed above. More current info on the Clout Project is available on the Clout home page: http://www.clout.chi.il.us.