AREDN-WEBPAGE-DIRECTORY

AREDN directory of telnet sites both on the regular internet and on the AREDN network

Version 2.0 - Final Consolidated Presentation List

This directory now includes comprehensive listings across multiple categories:

I. Scientific & Space Data

• NASA JPL Horizons (horizons.jpl.nasa.gov:6775) - Real-time ephemerides for 1.3M+ celestial objects
• Solar Flux & Propagation (dx.clearskyinstitute.com:7373) - Live WWV solar data for HF prediction

II. Real-Time Information Utilities

• University of Michigan Weather (rainmaker.wunderground.com) - NWS text forecasts and marine alerts
• Aviation Weather (METAR/TAF) (metar.vne.com) - Raw airport weather data
• The Bitcoin Ticker (ticker.bitcointicker.co:10080) - Live text feed for market stability testing

III. Network & Infrastructure Diagnostics

• NIST Atomic Time (time.nist.gov:13) - Single-packet UTC time check
• BGP Route Views (route-views.oregon-ix.net) - Global routing table viewer for troubleshooting gateways

IV. Reference & Educational Systems

• Dictionary (DICT) Server (dict.org:2628) - Searchable multi-database word definitions
• Wikipedia Terminal Bridge (telnet.wiki.gd) - Low-bandwidth, text-only Wikipedia access
• Telehack (telehack.com) - 1980s network simulation and massive technical archive

V. Specialty & Unlisted Ham BBSes

• Galacticomm Official (bbs.gcomm.com) - Original flagship MajorBBS system
• The Vortex BBS (bbs.thevortex.com) - MajorBBS node for VTC routing testing
• K8OE-BBS (k8oe.ddns.net) - Specialized amateur radio and AREDN-focused board
• N0ARY BBS (bbs.n0ary.org) - Classic packet radio terminal simulation

VI. Communication Gateways

• Winlink RMS Telnet (cmsterm.winlink.org:8778) - Bridge mesh/packet mail to Winlink
• Usenet News (news.eternal-september.org:119) - Global newsgroups via NNTP

VII. DX Clusters & Propagation

• DX Cluster Minimalist (dxc.nc7j.com:7373) - Raw spotting feed for band conditions
• K2SDR DX Cluster (k2sdr.net:7373) - Live HF radio propagation spots

Additional Notable Services

• ISCABBS - Oldest continuously operating online community
• BatMUD - High-fantasy MUD stable over multi-hop networks
• Aardwolf MUD - Best-maintained MUD with low-bandwidth mode
• Archaic Binary - Security and retro-computing focus
• Aioe & Eternal September - Newsgroup gateways
• CNN Text News - Real-time headlines via Gopher

Features

• Searchable directory with filtering by type
• Real-time status indicators
• Categorization for easy browsing
• Optimized for AREDN mesh network access
• Low-bandwidth, text-only services prioritized
• Auto-update capability - Automatically syncs with telnetbbsguide.com

Auto-Update Configuration

The directory now includes 42 BBSes automatically scraped from telnetbbsguide.com, with the ability to keep them synchronized as the source site updates.

Quick Setup (Linux/macOS)

Run the interactive setup script:

./setup_autoupdate.sh

This will prompt you to choose an update frequency:

• Every hour
• Every 6 hours
• Every 12 hours (recommended)
• Every 24 hours (daily)
• Every 3 days
• Custom cron expression

Manual Setup

If you prefer to set up the cron job manually:

# View your current crontab
crontab -l

# Edit the crontab
crontab -e

# Add one of these lines (replace /path/to with actual path):
# Update every 6 hours:
0 */6 * * * /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/update_bbs_list.py >> /path/to/bbs_update.log 2>&1

# Update daily at 2 AM:
0 2 * * * /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/update_bbs_list.py >> /path/to/bbs_update.log 2>&1

# Update every 12 hours:
0 */12 * * * /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/update_bbs_list.py >> /path/to/bbs_update.log 2>&1

Update Process

The update_bbs_list.py script:

1. Fetches the latest BBS listings from telnetbbsguide.com
2. Parses entries for address, port, and name
3. Updates the index.html database with new/changed entries
4. Logs all updates to bbs_update.log
5. Maintains existing webpage styling and original BBS entries

Monitoring Updates

Check the update log:

tail -f bbs_update.log

View recent updates:

cat bbs_update.log | grep SUCCESS

Remove Auto-Update

To disable automatic updates:

crontab -e
# Delete the line containing update_bbs_list.py
# Save and exit

Last Updated

February 2026 - Version 2.0 with Auto-Update