Category | Description |
---|---|
Alternate Operating Systems | Alternate Operating Systems – Quarterdeck DesqView, CP/M, etc |
Assembly Language | Assembly Language Source Code |
BASIC Language | BASIC Source Code |
Batch Files | Batch File Utilities – mostly for DOS |
BBS Files | BBS Programs+Doors |
C Source Code | C Source Code |
C++ Source Code | C++ Source Code |
Communications | Communication (modem) tools and utilities |
Databases and related files | Databases and related files |
Dbase Source Code | Dbase (Clipper, FoxBase, etc) Languages Source Code |
DeskTop Publishing | DeskTop Publishing in the 1990’s |
Display Utilities | Display Utilities |
DOOM map files | The game DOOM – Wad files were custom maps |
Early Multimedia Files | Early Multimedia Files |
EmTeX (TeX/LaTeX) tools | EmTeX is a TeX/LaTeX document editor |
File Managers | File Managers |
Files from Magazines | Files from Magazines |
Financial and Statistics | Financial and Statistics |
Font Collections | Font Collections |
Forth Source Code | Forth Source Code |
Games and Entertainment | A Collection of Games for DOS and WIndows |
Graphic Animations | Graphic Animations – Lots of older FLI’s |
HD Utilities | HD Utilities |
Information about the Internet from the early 1990’s | Information about the Internet from the early 1990’s |
Linux Files | Linux Files |
Lotus and other Spreadsheets | Lotus and other Spreadsheets |
Miscellaneous Language Source Code | Miscellaneous Language Source Code |
Modula II Source Code | Modula II Source Code |
Music and Digitized Voice | Music and Digitized Voice |
Network Files | Network Files |
OS/2 Files | OS/2 Files |
Paradox DBMS | Paradox DBMS |
Pascal Source Code | Pascal Source Code |
Printer + Display Graphics | Printer + Display Graphics |
Printer Utilities | Printer Utilities |
Recently Uploaded Files | Recently Uploaded Files |
Science and Education | Science and Education |
System Diagnostics | System Diagnostics for your computer |
Tutorials + Patches | Tutorials + Patches |
UNIX Files | UNIX Files |
Unprotects for Games and Such | Unprotects for Games and Such |
Utilities for DOS and Windows Machines | Utilities for DOS and Windows Machines |
Various Text files | Various Text files |
Windows 3.X Files | Windows 3.X Files |
Windows NT Files | Windows NT Files |
Word Perfect | Word Perfect |
Word Processors | Word Processors |
When I first started programming back in the late 1970’s, there were not a lot of examples of existing programs. Sure, most BASIC manuals had some simple programs, in fact, the TRS-80 shipped with an excellent manual written by David Lien, however a serious developer quickly ran through those simple programs. David Ahl’s books that featured computer games written in BASIC, and new magazine such as Byte quickly filled the void.
By the time modems and BBS’s first came about in the early 80’s, programmers started to share source code, and make it available for use. In many ways, this was the origin of open source software. Developers freely made available pieces of code that they had developed.
The Programmer’s Corner was a repository for many of these collections. It became one of the most popular sources for software developers looking for just that right piece of code that could help them finish their project. In addition, the message boards were visited by some of the best programmers at the time, always willing to help out with a particularly difficult problem. In a pre-Google world, this was pretty heady stuff. Having individuals like Bill Parke uploading super useful DOS utilities that also included the source code opened up a new world for those who had been forced to buy prepackaged commercial programs, or go without. To see some examples of early ASM code, visit here.
When I first started my BBS in 1985, the goal was pretty simple, setup a computer to answer the phone and see who was on the other end! There was something very interesting about hosting a platform that allowed anonymous folks from around the world to post their thoughts. My first BBS as called The Monolith, after the famous object in 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke. It was a simple BBS that allowed folks to login and post a message or two. At the time, it hosted a pretty lively political debate, as well as other interesting conversations, some of which I will share in future posts.
In the next few years, I along with my friend Drue Kennon wrote our own BBS software, PcConnect, that was built from the ground up to support multiple simultaneous callers. This system allowed callers to not only read messages and download files, but also to chat to each other in real-time. Remember, this was in the late 80’s, 10 years before AIM was a hit.
Along the way, the BBS morphed from The Monolith to The Programmer’s Corner, a meeting place for software developers who were just starting to really take advantage of these cool PC’s. By the end, TPC hosted over 25,000 files that totaled 12.5G’s in space (A crazy amount of space 20 years ago). You can now access many of these files here.
In 1993, this was one of the largest BBS’s in the country. At its peak, it supported over 20 lines, with some eventually having access to the Internet before browsers were even invented. Callers could access telnet, gopher, and FTP. The Internet ultimately killed it off.
This was also a subscription service for access to the large collection of source code for programmers. In 1992, over 1000 software developers were subscribers. If you needed source code pre-Internet, The Programmer’s Corner was a must stop visit.
Welcome to The Programmer’s Corner
Brought to you by Gary Smith
** Voted the Best BBS in Maryland by Computer Shopper **
The Programmer’s Corner can be reached by calling either
301-596-7692 or 410-995-6873.
All lines are USR 28.8K V.34 Modems.
12.5 Gigabyte HD with thousands of great Public Domain+Shareware
programs, along with loads of source code. More files added daily!
15 Lines available 24 hours a day
Internet Access, E-mail, FTP, Gopher, Telnet, and more to come.
All users have an Internet e-mail account on pcorner.com
Downloaded From :
The Programmer’s Corner 301-596-7692 and 410-995-6873. 28.8K V.34 V.42bis
12 Gigabytes On-Line 24 hours a day, 15 nodes. Internet Access.
Get your own Internet E-mail address.