Synchronet Version 4 (Meta List)
Version 4 would introduce things I'd like to do, but hestitate due to backward compatibility (v2 & v3):
- Eliminate binary configuration files (.cnf) in favor of .ini.
- Eliminate .cfg files in favor of .ini.
- Eliminate the sub-board ptridx nightmare.
- Eliminate the node configuration files.
- Allow integration of newslink.cfg, listserver.ini, etc (areas.bbs?) with subs.ini (or whatever).
- Rename sbbs.ini to startup.ini supporting custom versions using hostname syntax only.
- Eliminate many binary data (.dab) files in favor of text (csv, tab, or ini).
- Replace user.dat with user.tab:
-
- Problems with current format: field lengths, no end-of-record marker,
-
- no end-of-field marker for full-length fields
-
- Use a fixed-field/record length, tab-delimited, line base format which would
-
- import directly into databases/spreadsheets (e.g. Excel), allow for pretty
-
- easy extensibility. Maybe variable field lengths (not as pretty) with padding
-
- at end of line to generate fixed record length.
- Eliminate SMB .sch (CRC history) files (redundant with new .hash file support).
- Create data/subs/
.ini file to store all application-specific per-sub data (like import/export pointers for SBBSecho, newslink, etc.). - Use SMB for file databases.
- Replace hard-coded file area functions (e.g. file listings, etc.) with JS modules.
- Replace message (subs/mail) reading functions with JS module.
- (possibly) remove Baja support (only if there's a really good reason).
- Create a stand alone event thread (not part of telnet/rlogin server), with separate, per host (not node) configuration.