Synergy Teleconferencing System
Encyclopedia
Synergy Teleconferencing System (STS) was a PC-based online chat
server popular in the 80's and 90s.It arose as a replacement for the outdated Diversi-Dial
system (DDial). Like DDial, it was a multi-line modem system that originally could handle 8 simultaneous connections (later updated to handle 16). While DDial was limited to 300 baud
, STS was capable of 2400 baud speeds (later hacks upped this to 14.4). Using internal software, one of these lines could be used to establish a link to another STS, effectively making the number of simultaneous users dependent on how many STS's were involved.
The interface and design was similar to DDial in that users logged into the system with a three digit number that served as a username. Once logged in, the user could change his name to whatever he wished, while his user number served as his identifier. Each user was assigned a user level. 0 was for non-members. Callers without a user number could log in for only a limited time. Usually 10 minutes, but this could be decreased to 5 when call volume was high. The numbered levels were for registered users, usually paying members. The upper levels, 50-99 were for various levels of moderators. The sysop
could assign a moderator level to any user, effectively giving them power to do various tasks such as kick out people who were being a nuisance, (a hack was used for banning callers who kept returning after they were kicked, using the recently emerging technology of caller ID
), making links to other STS's, creating channels or terrorizing lower-level users.
/e130 We meeting at the diner tonight?
The recipient would read his mail by simply entering:
/e
To send a private message to another user, the command would be:
/p130 Whats Up?
Because of its simple design, STS was thought to be unhackable. Successful attempts have been made in crashing an STS using line flooding (only for it to reboot), but there are no known successful attempts at hacking one without directly accessing the main console.
Online chat
Online chat may refer to any kind of communication over the Internet, that offers an instantaneous transmission of text-based messages from sender to receiver, hence the delay for visual access to the sent message shall not hamper the flow of communications in any of the directions...
server popular in the 80's and 90s.It arose as a replacement for the outdated Diversi-Dial
Diversi-Dial
Diversi-Dial, or DDial was an online chat server that was popular during the mid-1980s. It was a specialized type of bulletin board system that allowed all callers to send lines of text to each other in real-time, operating at 300 baud...
system (DDial). Like DDial, it was a multi-line modem system that originally could handle 8 simultaneous connections (later updated to handle 16). While DDial was limited to 300 baud
Baud
In telecommunications and electronics, baud is synonymous to symbols per second or pulses per second. It is the unit of symbol rate, also known as baud rate or modulation rate; the number of distinct symbol changes made to the transmission medium per second in a digitally modulated signal or a...
, STS was capable of 2400 baud speeds (later hacks upped this to 14.4). Using internal software, one of these lines could be used to establish a link to another STS, effectively making the number of simultaneous users dependent on how many STS's were involved.
The interface and design was similar to DDial in that users logged into the system with a three digit number that served as a username. Once logged in, the user could change his name to whatever he wished, while his user number served as his identifier. Each user was assigned a user level. 0 was for non-members. Callers without a user number could log in for only a limited time. Usually 10 minutes, but this could be decreased to 5 when call volume was high. The numbered levels were for registered users, usually paying members. The upper levels, 50-99 were for various levels of moderators. The sysop
SysOp
A sysop is an administrator of a multi-user computer system, such as a bulletin board system or an online service virtual community. It may also be used to refer to administrators of other Internet-based network services....
could assign a moderator level to any user, effectively giving them power to do various tasks such as kick out people who were being a nuisance, (a hack was used for banning callers who kept returning after they were kicked, using the recently emerging technology of caller ID
Caller ID
Caller ID , also called calling line identification or calling number identification or Calling Line Identification Presentation , is a telephone service, available in analog and digital phone systems and most Voice over Internet Protocol applications, that transmits a caller's number to...
), making links to other STS's, creating channels or terrorizing lower-level users.
Commands
Due to how the system worked, all input was done on a single string of text, limited to 255 bytes (255 characters). All system commands were preceded by a slash, followed by the command, followed by any variables. For instance, to send an email to user #130, your command might be:/e130 We meeting at the diner tonight?
The recipient would read his mail by simply entering:
/e
To send a private message to another user, the command would be:
/p130 Whats Up?
Because of its simple design, STS was thought to be unhackable. Successful attempts have been made in crashing an STS using line flooding (only for it to reboot), but there are no known successful attempts at hacking one without directly accessing the main console.