Zer0net (AKA The Zer0 Network) is a small, private FTN-based message network (“othernet”) that caters to underground bulletin board systems.
Zer0net was founded in the late 1990s during a desperate time when the last few great dial-up systems were folding and, due to lack of good solutions, telnet hadn’t quite taken hold outside of the odd “public domain” Wildcat and Worldgroup board. Times were changing and while others struggled to come up with ways to move our technology forward or to shift away from the BBS scene entirely, we dedicated this echomail network to the idea of keeping the underground scene and its various areas of interest a part of active conversation on what few “elite” bulletin board systems remained.
With that in mind, Zer0net was built upon 3 principles which have guided it since its inception:
- We feature casual conversation revolving around the underground art scenes, the h/p scenes, warez, programming, demos and tracking, and of course all things related to BBSing itself. Many of Zer0net’s regular contributors are influential members of the BBS scene, past and present, and we have official and unofficial affiliations to a wide array of scene groups and software.
- As far as that conversation is concerned, we value free speech. The network features open, unmoderated discussion. We never ban topics, never prune messages, and only ban or filter specific users in cases of extreme abusive or disruptive behavior.
- Traditionally, membership to The Zero Network has been highly selective. Specifically, systems with beautiful custom artwork, large amounts of modification, an authentic old school, underground feel, and/or an active, quality local community are what we were most looking for, and even today, we’re only interested in serious SysOps who plan on sticking it out for a while. There are many other networks out there for the innumerable SysOps who get nostalgic and put up boards with default setups and no active users. This is not one of them! Likewise, if your only goal is to add yet another network name to your conference list without ever actually participating, please don’t bother.
That said, if you think your system will add some value to the network, whether it’s the kind of elite system described above, or if that just means you posting a ton yourself, please download our latest infopack (always available here) and fill out the application. Update 7/1/2024: After a very long pause, Zer0net is once again accepting applications!
Download the current Zer0net infopack! (updated 12/2024)
Other notable articles related to the network:
- Zer0net 2024 Changes – 25 years down, let’s change some stuff!
- Zer0net’s Big Two Oh! – celebrating the origins and history of the network.
- All posts tagged with Zer0net.
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1. Included in k1-lg23.ans by Knocturnal from Fuel #23 (2017)