WASHINGTON WEDDING:
A TALE OF TWO BOARDS

 
by Brian Gallagher
Boardwatch Magazine, April/May 1994

Among all of the conventioneers at last year's ONE BBSCON in Colorado Springs, getting the latest on one of the fastest growing industries on the globe, two sysops, Andrew Bilski and Tony McClenny, set the foundations to do some growing of their own. While the idea of merging their two PCBoard BBSs, Bilski's Main Frame (301) 654-2554 in Germantown, MD, and McClenny's Virginia Connection, (703) 648-1841 in Reston, VA, had been brought up before - nothing really came of it until the August trade show.

For McClenny, a retired business executive, and Bilski, a computer specialist for an accounting firm, creating one of the Washington D.C. area's largest boards is simply a Capitol idea. Today the two talk turkey about modems, machines, Telnet and Internet galore, but 15 years ago they were working apart.

As the manager of a 25,000 square foot warehouse style retail store in 1979, McClenny took a night class in computers at a local college to get caught up on new technologies. The moment he saw the realities of computers and what they could do, he saw possibilities and applications not only for the business, but also in the education of his children. So, it came as no surprise when there was a computer under the family tree that Christmas.

Thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean, a young Andrew Bilski in Krakow Poland, "...wanted to see how it was in this country." When opportunity knocked in 1980, he answered. Before arriving on our shores he had two impressions of America, largely reflected in popular opinions among Poles... 1)In America money grows on trees, and 2)In America all you can afford is window shopping. What he found was a harsher reality. After being here only a short while, he was shot numerous times during a robbery while walking home from a midnight mass in the Washington, D.C. area.

With two bullets still lodged inside of him he recovered and perservered. Undaunted by this sizable setback, Bilski's eyes turned not to this unfortunate turn of events, but to technology. For the longest time he was intrigued by the Commodore 64 computer with 300 baud modem, but the $600 purchase price just wasn't in his budget. When the price dropped to $200 in 1983, he couldn't afford not to get one. As is always the case with natural born sysops, Bilski couldn't resist setting up his own BBS, and in just over a year The Main Frame was born. Why did Bilski call his board Main Frame? "I say hey ... small computer, big name - let's go for it!"

Meanwhile, McClenny kept up on his computer classes and assisted computerizing the company he worked for. This had its rewards, by 1984 he was promoted to district manager, in charge of 11 stores, with over $140 million in annual sales. The new position came with a temporary relocation to Virginia Beach separating him not only from the family, but from his latest greatest hobby - a BBS he was running for friends on a TRS 80.

While in Virginia Beach, McClenny took seriously ill and was unable to work for three months. This illness turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it became a pit stop on McClenny's travels down the Information Super Highway.

Being away from his BBS and away from work McClenny started going a little stir crazy. To alleviate his boredom, he talked a friend into driving him to town, (he was too weak to drive), where he purchased his first IBM PC along with RBBS. The rest of what happened is now called the Virginia Connection, and it started as a way to fill the 10 meg hard drive on McClenny's new computer.

As time passed the two fledgling sysops took the steps that would eventually lead them to each other's doors. Bilski replaced his aging and limited Commodore with an IBM PC and loaded it with PCBoard and became a charter member of the Capital Area Sysops Association, where he and Bilski would become better acquainted. Bilski and McClenny met regularly at the CASA mettings and continued exchanging ideas for several years, which eventually led to Bilski's proposing a merger about a year and a half ago. While that didn't go through, they did decide to merge into the same hotel room at ONE BBSCON last year - cutting their expenses and doubling the area they could cover at the event.

During the convention each took "pages and pages of notes" and joked about merging their two boards from time to time over meals, but it was always light-hearted chat. The real winners from the show turned out to be the users - as both sysops came away with new additions to their boards. McClenny added PC Catalog to the Virginia Connection, and Bilski found his golden thread of Internet through Brad Clements' Murkworks Software, (315) 265-4717.

A short while after the show the joking stopped and the idea of merging the two boards again surfaced, but this time nobody was laughing. As an interesting turn of events, it was McClenny who approached Bilski with the merger idea on this go 'round, and early this year - knowing that they were doubling many efforts, Bilski agreed. The merger involves a bit of work including reworking the software for the two systems, merging two 5000 member databases, and piles of paperwork associated with such a venture. While it is a big step, both men are looking forward to their new creation with excited anticipation.

The WorldNet, (703) 620-8900, will offer 33 lines, extensive Internet with Telnet, over 12 gigabytes of files, and if everything goes as planned - will be open for business April 1 - no fooling!

Besides the BBS, the two also plan on utilizing Bilski's talents and expertise as a certified Novell engineer by installing PCBoard for companies, organizations and individuals. Bilski, who works for his employer on a reduced schedule of three days per week - considers the possibility of one day working full time as a sysop. If this happens, it is likely he will spend most of his time engrossed with the Internet, and tinkering with Telnet.

Listening to him talk about telnetting you'd think you were listening to a 1950s radio commercial, "It is new, unique and fun to use Telnet." he says, but it doesn't take long for you to realize that he isn't trying to sell you on anything - he's just excited. Watching people telnet to his board from Italy, Brazil, Singapore and Japan, is the thrill of his day. And for good reason - it seems that Telnet has been very, very good to him. A certain Christina "Tina" Hughes, the significant other in Bilski's life who is on assignment in Japan for the company she works for, telnetted a "Yes" from Japan this last Valentine's Day onto Bilski's Main Frame. Bilski's comment, "She took her time to decide, but I got my answer and I'm happy about it." It seems that merging and BBSing are in all facets of Bilski's life.

While many smaller BBS operators fear one day being swallowed by the larger services, eventually drowning in an online sea of anonymity, these two have ensured their existence as one of the big fish to be contended with in the D.C. area. Thanks to the cyber realm, the much fabled and ballyhooed "Land of Opportunity" seems to be just that, at least for one Polish immigrant. And for many others, whether they are in America, Africa, Europe or Eurasia - opportunity seems to exist wherever a phone line, computer, modem and will come together.