TMN HEADLINES:

- MicroLink lose gateway
- Free membership for Voyetra purchasers
- Telecom launch DialPlus

After describing at great length last month about sending Email between TMN, MicroLink and Telecom Gold, we hear that Telecom have closed down the mail-through facility which MicroLink had established!

As many people will know, Telecom and MicroLink did not part on the best of terms when MicroLink announced that it was leaving the BT fold for pastures new, transferring its operation to the ISTEL system. MicroLink, with its thousands of users who had joined as a low cost means of getting onto Telecom Gold, obviously needed to maintain an Email link through to the Telecom Gold system and other related BT user groups (such as ESI Street), simply because so many of its users had joined for that very facility. The move to ISTEL appears from a user's point of view to have gone quite smoothly. However, the loss of their Email gateway may cause them problems.

For TMN users, the mail procedure to MicroLink outlined in last month's issue is therefore no longer operational, though TMN is looking for a way around this problem and we'll keep you in touch with any developments. In the meantime, there are no problems with sending or receiving mail from Telecom Gold users and you can still Email them using the procedure covered last month.

FREE MEMBERSHIP FOR VOYETRA PURCHASERS

Computer Music Systems, UK distributors for Voyetra music software, are giving away a free membership to The Music Network worth £45. Customers who purchase their Sequencer Plus music software for IBM PC compatibles are entitled to free membership and access to the Computer Music Systems support conference.

This conference is used to announce software updates, product news, users' queries, and hints and tips. Being an 'open' conference, it depends heavily on Voyetra users to make a contribution and allows you to keep in touch with other like-minded users of the program. For details contact Roger Evan at Computer Music Systems. (Contact Details).

FASTER, CHEAPER ACCESS VIA DIALPLUS

TMN's UK users now have an easier and faster way to access The Music Network. British Telecom has become a little more friendlier by opening its new PSS service, called PSS DialPlus. The most notable difference over the traditional PSS access points is the user interface, which has done away with having to type in loads of system identity codes and numbers. The new user-friendly approach is very simple: you just type the name of the system you wish to access. So, for TMN users, you now type greennet at the prompt and you are immediately transported to the log-on screen of The Music Network. (GreenNet is the system computer that TMN runs on.) Technically, DialPlus has a lot of benefits to offer. It features 2400, 1200, 75/1200, and 300 baud access all on the same phone numbers, plus MNP Level 5 error correction - so no more line noise! At the moment there are a couple of dozen access points across the country but this number will increase rapidly, ultimately giving a unique level of national coverage. And the facility is no more expensive than current PSS, though much easier to use.

The opening of the new service means that even more people will now be within a local 'A rate' phone call of an access point. This, combined with lower phone bills due to faster upload/download speeds, can only result in one thing - a lot of happy people!

With the introduction of DialPlus there are now over 50 access points across the country, when you include the current PSS nodes and a Vodaphone number for portable phone users. TMN recommends that all users take immediate advantage of the new DialPlus service.

PSS DIALPLUS NETWORK ACCESS POINTS

The DialPlus Network Access Points listed below are now in service. You may additionally be able to use other Network Access Points as detailed in the PSS DialPlus User Guide. However, some of the points are not fully in service, so they may be subject to interruption. We would therefore advise you to only use the following network access points until further notice:

Aberdeen (Contact Details)
Birmingham (Contact Details)
Belfast (Contact Details)
Bristol (Contact Details)
Cambridge (Contact Details)
Cardiff (Contact Details)
Chelmsford (Contact Details)
Crewe (Contact Details)
Exeter (Contact Details)
Edinburgh (Contact Details)
Glasgow (Contact Details)
Hastings (Contact Details)
Ipswich (Contact Details)
Kings Lynn (Contact Details)
Leeds (Contact Details)
Leamington Spa (Contact Details)
Liverpool (Contact Details)
Llandudno (Contact Details)
London (Contact Details)
Luton (Contact Details)
Machynlleth (Contact Details)
Manchester (Contact Details)
Newcastle (Contact Details)
Northampton (Contact Details)
Norwich (Contact Details)
Nottingham (Contact Details)
Oxford (Contact Details)
Peterborough (Contact Details)
Plymouth (Contact Details)
Reading (Contact Details)
Southampton (Contact Details)
Taunton (Contact Details)
Vodafone gateway (Contact Details)

Further access points will be brought into service before the end of February 1990.

FURTHER INFORMATION

The Music Network, PO Box 5, Somerton, Somerset, TA11 6SX. 045874281.