ProLine 3.0 Software ©1988-1999, Morgan Davis. All Rights Reserved.
ProLine 3.1/Y2K Update Software ©1999-2001, Eric A. Seiden. All Rights Reserved.

Please note that from 2 September 2001, I cannot provide meaningful support for ProLine. Pro-Entropy suffered a catastrophic hardware failure on 1 September 2001, and has been taken out of service permanently. While I can answer some questions via e-mail, I no longer have an operating ProLine on which to experiment to help you. All source code to the Y2K (3.1 update) has been lost. Full information is available here (opens in its own window).

First, and most importantly, the ProLine 3.0 package is copyrighted by Morgan Davis. It is posted here with his permission. You have the right to download it for your own personal use. You do not have the right to post it anywhere, sell it, give it away, put it on a CD, or anything else. Only he can give you that permission. I cannot do it, so don't ask me, please. You may contact Morgan Davis directly but I don't have a valid e-mail anymore. Do not contact him for technical support. He will not provide it.

The ProLine 3.1 and Y2K updater is required to use ProLine 3.0 properly. It will function until 2099 and will fail in the year 2100. This package is copyrighted by Eric A. Seiden (that's me). You have the right to download it for your own personal use. You do not have the right to post it anywhere, sell it, give it away, put it on a CD, or anything else. Only I can give you that permission. I will consider giving you that permission if and only if Morgan Davis has given you permission to distribute his software. You may contact me via e-mail.

You must read this ENTIRE page to be entitled to support. If you ask me a question and the answer is on this page, I will not reply to your e-mail.

Do you want to own powerful Apple II (//e, //c, //gs) BBS software for virtually nothing except postage cost? If so, read on and enter a new world of great BBS software!

ProLine is an internet-ready BBS program for the Apple IIe, IIc, and IIgs. It is fully automated and has been around for years. There are some basic system requirements (80 columns and 64K RAM and a small hard drive) that are pretty easy to meet for any user. Once you have ProLine up and running, you can exchange internet e-mail, run message boards, and even subscribe to Usenet groups.

I've been using ProLine since February 1993 and I really love it. It's been a great piece of software that's withstood the test of time. Sure, BBSs may be dying, but they serve a purpose. You can even make a private BBS system for a particular purpose; you don't have to network it to the outside world unless you want to. I use my BBS to provide product support and also as a place to run mailing lists, and for private and public discussion groups among friends. There's even a software library module and some on-line games as well.

You can even write your own add-on modules ("doors" to you old hacks) in BASIC. If you'd like to sign on to our system and try it out, there's no charge other than your long distance charges. Call XXX-XXX-XXXX and use guest to login, or type register to create a new account (guest accounts don't have full access to the system); there is no charge to use the system except your regular telephone charges.

This Y2K project has been done with the permission of Morgan Davis who wrote the original ProLine software. The Y2K project installs on top of an existing ProLine v3.0 installation and becomes ProLine v3.1 which is fully Y2K compliant. Some modules now have newer version numbers due to subsequent enhancements. Please note there is NO printed manual available.

If you have version 2.x/1.x of ProLine you can also take this opportunity to upgrade to 3.0; If you already have ProLine v3.0 you only need the patch disk. If you have never owned ProLine, then you need the original software AND the patch disk. ProLine is available only on 3.5" floppy diskettes.

As far as support goes, YES, I will offer support. This support is free and will be given when I have time on my schedule. As soon as you tell me what I "better do" or "must do" you will not receive any further help from me. Please do not whine that I am not answering fast enough.

Also, remember that I did not write many of the modules, many of the modules have no source code, and in some cases, I just don't understand the source code because it's so old and undocumented. If this is the case, I probably can't fix it.

As far as what you are about to install: all non-game modules work properly (except FLIP) as far as I can tell. Some of the game modules work and some don't. The Y2K disk has the complete set included on it.

You must read this ENTIRE page to be entitled to support. If you ask me a question and the answer is on this page, I will not reply to your e-mail. I'm really easy to get along with unless you haven't read what I've gone to the trouble to write. If these instructions are unclear, I will gladly clarify. Just e-mail me and tell me what you don't understand. If you write a great ProLine module and would like it posted here, I'll gladly do so. I'll collect your questions and make a FAQ if there's demand.

What follows are the installation instructions. Read and follow them. If you don't, it won't work.

1. Welcome to ProLine! To use it, you must have a 3.5" disk drive and I strongly recommend a hard drive. You must have 64K of RAM and at least an Apple IIe. You must have a modem. Contrary to the documentation you must have 80 columns. You must have a real Apple. Will it work on a non-Apple? Supposedly. That isn't supported. ProLine will not work on Bernie or Gus. Or at least, they shouldn't. If you make it work, and want to tell the world how, I'll post it here.
2. You must boot directly into ProDOS/8. Do not use GS/OS. If you use GS/OS your install will fail and your disks will be damaged due to the GS/OS finder droppings. (If this happens, you must delete the finder effluvia files. Because they have resource forks and are invisible, they cause the 8 bit installer to choke.)
3. If you got your software from any unauthorized source you will not get support. The reason I won't support unauthorized software is that I cannot guarantee it is the latest version and has not been tampered with. This is especially true if you get a copy from that nasty CSA2 pirate who shall remain nameless. He is lower than scum. Anyone who deals with him does not deserve to live on the planet.
4. Great! You've made it this far. There are three archived files. Download all three. (You must option-click on the link and select SAVE AS).
   A. proline.1
   B. proline.2
   C. pl.y2k (If you already have ProLine 3.0 then you only need this disk)
   D. If you prefer, all three of these files are in one single SIT archive which will expand to the three listed files above.
5. The first two are ".image" files that Morgan provided me. Make two 800K Apple II floppies out of them. I've been told by a Byron Desnoyers Winmill that these are Disk Copy (Mac) 4.2 images.
6. The third archive is a BXY (made using Stuffit for the Mac) with a GSHK disk image inside. You need to turn this into an 800K Apple II floppy called "pl.y2k". Use the program GSHK to convert it back, or any other method that will work for you.
7. The first two disks are ProLine 3.0 which you must install, configure, and run. Please, do not try to connect to the outside world with ProLine 3.0. The outside world doesn't like 3.0 because it is stuck in the 1900s. Just boot the first disk (ProLine1) and follow the on-screen instructions.
8. Once you install ProLine 3.0, you should log into the account you made as part of the installation process. When the main menu "PLUSH" appears, exit to the shell.
9. Insert the Y2K disk (ProLine 3.1 update) into your floppy drive.
10. You will need to type "cd /pl.y2k" to access the update disk. There is a file called "READMEFIRST" -- I bet you know what to do. That file explains how to install the update.
11. Once the update installs, you are good to go! Congratulations!
12. If you want to connect to the outside world, you will need a UMDSS account. Note: To connect via the internet, you need a UMDSS account. CBBS.CTS.COM and CLARK.NET are the only two known US providers. CTS is proving UMDSS services through CBBS. This includes your own sub-domain for your site "pro-sitename.cbbs.cts.com" (There may be others, however I don't KNOW of any that still offer UMDSS services.)

SPECIAL THANKS to Walter B. Hoye II of Pro-Christ for his Beta Testing efforts which were above and beyond the call of duty! Also special thanks to Don Elton of CBBS for enabling UMDSS support for ProLine. Thanks also to Morgan Davis for conceiving and writing ProLine and also for allow it to be posted here.

All the known bugs are included in a document on your ProLine Y2K update disk. Anything included here is found after the date of the last update disk.

1. FLIP won't work no matter what it claims on the update disk. Don't try it. Extraordinarly Bad Things happen.
2. Some users have been unable to install DL and make it work. I don't know why.