TAPCIS to die on June 30

[John Francis]

That is, CompuServe Classic will be discontinued, its old servers shut down, dial-up access will be no more, OurWorld and other Classic services will cease, and Classic e-mail accounts will be shifted to POP3 and IMAP. The word went out to Classic subscribers in an e-mail dated April 15 - income tax day. How many remember that CompuServe originated on the computers of H & R Block?

I'm still using TAPCIS for e-mail, and keep an old laptop running Windows 98 to support it. There's still nothing better for saving e-mail in text files. For me, it's been worth it to keep on paying the monthly bill. (That will now stop, as the new e-mail service will be free.) But time has finally run out.

[Lindsey]

The word went out to Classic subscribers in an e-mail dated April 15 - income tax day. How many remember that CompuServe originated on the computers of H & R Block?

Hah! I knew that, but that's an association I hadn't made!

I'm still using TAPCIS for e-mail, and keep an old laptop running Windows 98 to support it.

Oh, my John! I think you win the TAPCIS loyal user award! I might still be using TAPCIS for mail myself (because I agree with you that I have found no better way to keep it than in T6's easily searchable files), except that CompuServe's classic e-mail itself became impossible to use because of the heavy volume of spam. (Well -- and then there was the growing volume of HTML e-mail that Classic simply didn't handle well, and TAPCIS knew absolutely nothing about.)

[Judy G. Russell]

I'm still using TAPCIS for e-mail, and keep an old laptop running Windows 98 to support it. There's still nothing better for saving e-mail in text files. For me, it's been worth it to keep on paying the monthly bill. (That will now stop, as the new e-mail service will be free.) But time has finally run out.It has indeed. You might want to go ahead and transfer your email over to a program like Eudora or Thunderbird, which is POP3/IMAP capable.

[John Francis]

I set up Tbird for POP3 access to my CompuServe e-mail address long ago, as a backup, but will keep on using TAPCIS as long as I can. Meanwhile, CompuServe (or Netscape as they now call themselves) will set up a new system for Classic e-mail users in mid-May, offering IMAP as well as POP3 - giving me 6 weeks set up Tbird again <sigh> until the old Classic servers are finally shut down on June 30.

[heinz57g]

>> but will keep on using TAPCIS as long as I can

wow, glad to see i am not totally alone (see other post too). this, after all, is called the
TAPCIS forum, so lets not forget where we came from. and those who are still with us,
one last shout pls.

greetings - heinz -

[heinz57g]

anybody by any chance has heard anything more detailed about
the new system yet? it is middle may, almost.

greetings - heinz -

[Mike]

CompuServe sent a follow-up describing the transition to the new mail system on Monday.

[Judy G. Russell]

CompuServe sent a follow-up describing the transition to the new mail system on Monday.If you or anyone else has that, feel free to post it.

[Peter Creasey]

If you or anyone else has that, feel free to post it.

Judy, Here you go...

Dear CompuServe Classic Member,

As mentioned in our previous notification, as of June 30, 2009
the CompuServe Classic service will no longer operate as an Internet
Service Provider. Note that this shutdown only relates to the
CompuServe Classic service. The CompuServe 2000 service will continue
to operate as it does today.

As part of this process, we are creating a new email system with which
you will be able to continue using your existing CompuServe Classic
email address. This new email service will be available to you at no
charge - but you will need to provide your own Internet access.

Any email messages in your CompuServe Classic mailbox will be moved to the
new system.

The transition to the new mail system will occur on May 18, 2009. After
this date, all access to your CompuServe Classic email will be provided
through the new system - and the existing CompuServe Classic email
system will be shut down.

* Some of the benefits of the new email system include:

+ Unlimited storage, which lets you keep as many messages as you want
+ Ability to receive large messages (up to 16MB per message)
+ Industry leading spam and virus protection to help eliminate
threats and hassles
+ Mail filters that allow you to store and organize mail
+ Open accessibility and compatibility with IMAP and POP3
+ Seamless integration with AIM for instant messaging

In order to migrate your existing mailbox and CompuServe Classic email address,
you will need to complete the following steps:

1. Between May 18 and June 30, go to http://member.compuserve.com/mailcenter
(either through the CompuServe Classic client or through your Internet browser).
NOTE: If you do not use the CompuServe Classic client to access the service,
you will be asked to provide your CompuServe Classic User ID and password
(or your POP3 email account information).

2. You will be shown your current CompuServe Classic email address and any
alias that may have been set up for your POP3 mailbox (if one exists).
Click on the "Migrate my CS Classic Email" link to begin the migration process.

3. You will be taken to the new email system. You'll need to agree to the
Terms of Service and provide various pieces of information (e.g. new email
password, zipcode / postal code, birthday, and an Account Security Question).

4. After providing the information in step 3, you will have access to the new
email system (and any messages from the old CompuServe Classic email system).

The new email system can be accessed from anywhere, requiring only a
Web browser (e.g. Internet Explorer, Firefox) and an Internet connection.
You can use the new email system by pointing your Internet browser at
http://webmail.compuserve.com.

If you use POP3 to access your email, you will need to provide updated
server information to your client software - including any new password you
chose - and the following POP3 / IMAP client settings:

pop.csi.com; port 110 (SSL = port 995)
imap.csi.com; port 143 (SSL = port 993)

If you are using a POP3 or IMAP client, you will also need to configure your
SMTP, or outbound email connection, to use "smtp.csi.com; port 587". NOTE: This
new SMTP server will require you to supply your email address and password
to send mail.

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS?

Member Services phone support will remain available and can answer any Email
related questions about CompuServe Classic.
Tech Support
1-800-848-8990
8 a.m. - 1 a.m. EST, Mon - Fri
10 a.m. - 10 p.m. EST Sat and Sun

We thank you for being a CompuServe Classic member over the past years.

Sincerely,


CompuServe Member Services

[heinz57g]

many thanks. this looks quite promising to me, all considered.

are those port and SSL nbrs anything special, or standard?

just wonder why this mssg has not yet gone out to ALL compuserve
members. checked german and dutch, nobody yet got anything - maybe
they got stuck in translation ...

many greetings - heinz -

[Jeff]

CompuServe sent a follow-up describing the transition to the new mail system on Monday.

Apparently, and seriously unfortunately, it will be a primary spammers target: csi.com. From that I conclude that compuserve.com is dead, when it should have been the other way around.


- Jeff

[heinz57g]

jeff (hi !), but doesnt it say:

'' ... you will be able to continue using your existing CompuServe Classic email address ... ''

and my existing addrs is a 'compuserve.com' addrs. so would that not indicate it could be kept
that way, too? that behind that actually stands CSI.COM as mail servers might be bad enough.

greetings - heinz -

[Mike]

csi.com.
csi.com is just an alias for compuserve.com, which means that any given account will have four addresses: 12345.677@compuserve.com, personal_address@compuserve.com, 12345.677@csi.com, and personal_address@csi.com.

CompuServe cannot turn off csi.com, because international offices continued to market that domain outside of the United States, even as the domestic (e.g., home) office was alerting users that the @csi.com domain could be disconnected at any time.

[Peter Creasey]

are those port and SSL nbrs anything special, or standard?

Heinz, They are standard.

You can likely keep the current outgoing server setting which you use with your ISP.

[heinz57g]

mike, peter, thanks, thats basically what i thought (hoped?), so all we
have to do is wait 4 more days.

the original mssg seems confusing to me, and i hope those still using
TAPCIS or any similar access method, and who do not check their mail
often enough, do not run into problems: it said that the old CLASSIC
would be available till 30JUN, which to me also meant access possibilities.

now it looks as if the switchover is actually on 18MAY, and between
18MAY and 30JUN you need to activate the new system, but between
those dates you can NOT use any of the old access systems (like
TAPCIS or CS4) anymore. well, thats how i read it. what they actually
will do, is, as so often with CIS, anybodys guess. why should that change ...

the very end of an era it is, for sure. i am sure i will miss the screeching
noise of my dial-up modem. even only used once a week for catalogueing,
it was a familiar 'being'.

greetings - heinz -

PS: dont worry, its pure nostalgia. i DO have plenty of alternatives and
backup systems since years.

[Jeff]

csi.com is just an alias for compuserve.com, which means that any given account will have four addresses: 12345.677@compuserve.com, personal_address@compuserve.com, 12345.677@csi.com, and personal_address@csi.com.

CompuServe cannot turn off csi.com, because international offices continued to market that domain outside of the United States, even as the domestic (e.g., home) office was alerting users that the @csi.com domain could be disconnected at any time.

Well now, that does explain how and why the major increase in spam to my csi.com "address" tends to be in languages that neither I nor "normal" email text can understand. And that is why I'm a bit torqued about the continued existence and now prominence of csi.com

- Jeff

[heinz57g]

jeff, they do promise (?) increased performance of spam and virus
handling on the new system, so lets see what that means. maybe
it is even adjustable, which, at YAHOO for example, does a fair job.

doesnt change the fact that spammers are the people i would like to
invite to a meeting, right behind my house, together with some much
younger, and rather heavy-set, friends of mine ... midnight OK?

greetings - heinz -

[Mike]

now it looks as if the switchover is actually on 18MAY, and between 18MAY and 30JUN you need to activate the new system, but between those dates you can NOT use any of the old access systems (like TAPCIS or CS4) anymore.
Only mail is affected Heinz. Everything else should continue, as is, until the end of June.

[Mike]

Well now, that does explain how and why the major increase in spam to my csi.com "address" tends to be in languages that neither I nor "normal" email text can understand. And that is why I'm a bit torqued about the continued existence and now prominence of csi.com.
Your disappointment is understandable. However, I think you'll find some salvation with the new system. As Heinz notes, it is promised with better spam control. It also has filtering capabilities, so you should be able to create a filter to send anything with "csi.com" in the "To:" address directly to the trash.

[heinz57g]

>> Only mail is affected Heinz. Everything else should continue

sorry mike, i am lost here. what else but mail should i have collected using TAPCIS,
as of late? the forums have long vanished.

>> create a filter to send anything with "csi.com" in the "To:" address directly to the trash

you outsmart them, they outsmart you much quicker than you think. feels like a war.

somehow not the way i thought the internet was to be going, some 15 years ago.

greetings - heinz -

[Jeff]

Your disappointment is understandable. However, I think you'll find some salvation with the new system. As Heinz notes, it is promised with better spam control. It also has filtering capabilities, so you should be able to create a filter to send anything with "csi.com" in the "To:" address directly to the trash.

My my, I can filter out what now appears to be the main mail domain? This may not be so bad after all.

- Jeff

[Mike]

sorry mike, i am lost here. what else but mail should i have collected using TAPCIS, as of late? the forums have long vanished.
Yeah, I suppose for someone using only Tapcis, there's nothing else to access. However, the network will continue running until June 30, so people who need a dial-up connection still have one.

somehow not the way i thought the internet was to be going, some 15 years ago.
I don't think it's what a lot of people thought 15 (or more!) years ago. In 1986, I thought I was one of a very small handful exchanging files and email with others (and email meant three messages a week!). Today, there are so many aspects of life that pretty much require one to have Internet access.

[Mike]

My my, I can filter out what now appears to be the main mail domain? This may not be so bad after all.
If you can't do the filtering at the server end, you definitely can do it in a POP3 client.

[poakes]

How many remember that CompuServe originated on the computers of H & R Block?



Actually it started on the computers of an insurance company. The H&R Block connection didn't happen until 1980 or so.

-poakes

[earler]

CompuServe began, like tymnet and telnet, as a time-sharing operations. If you needed some computing power you turned to time-sharing since big mainframes were either too expensive or already working on other tasks. I well remember using a time-sharing service for consulting assignment we were doing in 1969.

I assume the insurance company, which already had computers, decided to expand business with time-sharing. The programmers, noting that the computers weren't being used much at night, thought that a consumer service could be implemented during those off hours. In fact, in early years you couldn't login to CompuServe until 5pm local time, nor after 8am in the morning. Service was available during all the weekend.

H&R block bought the business in 1981.