1
50
4
-
http://queerdigital.com/files/original/4b8022038deb8dffb23916c7a3549d3c.png
f5bda335d4fee76bf7f766d0e72fadc5
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Queer Digital Community Catalog
Language
A language of the resource
English
Description
An account of the resource
<p dir="ltr"><span>This catalog collects basic information and resources on LGBTQ-related online communities prior to 2010, particularly those from the so-called Web 1.0 period. Each catalog entry includes information on the group’s format, its approximate dates of activity, its audience and topical focus, and links to other materials discussing the group, such as editorial columns, personal essays, or archival materials.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>One of the driving impulses for the creation of this catalog was to offer a starting place for research into early LGBTQ life online. As I found in my own research, simply knowing the name of a place or person could, in some cases, be key to my archival research. Beyond just its research utility, however, this catalog is also meant to preserve the memory, if not the content, of communities and groups whose names might otherwise be lost or forgotten.<br /></span></p>
<h2>Why a Catalog?</h2>
<p dir="ltr">I’ve chosen to focus on a catalog, as opposed to an archive, for several reasons. Firstly, at its most basic level, an archive is focused on primary material—in this case, the content of posts. However, archiving for most online groups from the mid-1980s up to the late 1990s is often incomplete at best, so in many cases, there’s limited to no archival material available. Instead, what exists in many cases is secondary material, writing describing or reflecting on posters’ experiences with and in these spaces. The catalog, ideally, links these disparate materials together in order to give a slightly fuller picture of the online landscape at any given time.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Secondly, posters in early LGBTQ groups often wrote (sometimes in detail) about close and personal issues in their lives under the assumption that their posts would remain private within the group. Given this, I’ve designed the catalog to respect (to the best of my ability) posters’ initial expectation of privacy. Linked content has all been previously published in other venues, and any other detailed personal reflections submitted by users specifically for the catalog have been made public with their consent.</p>
<h2>What Qualifies A Community For Inclusion?</h2>
<p dir="ltr"><span>There are no specific criteria determining inclusion in the QDCC. However, many of the communitites currently listed in the catalog have multiple references in contemporaneous periodicals, newsletters, web guides, or other LGBTQ-related informational websites. These sources are key for establishing not only the existence of a space, but its particular attributes.</span></p>
<h2 dir="ltr"><strong>On Audience Labels</strong></h2>
<p dir="ltr">All of the communities cataloged include descriptive metadata culled from various sources, including contemporaneous listings in print publications and online reference guides. However, the terminology used in archival sources does not always match current preferred terms. <a href="http://notchesblog.com/2017/11/28/troubling-terms-the-label-problem-in-transgender-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">As has been discussed elsewhere</a>, retroactively applying labels with which individuals or spaces might not have identified is a politically fraught act. In my metadata practices, then, I follow a policy similar to that of the <a href="https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/about/policies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Transgender Archive</a>: whenever possible, I use terminology included in contemporaneous decriptions. If terminology is not used or a detailed description is not available, I categorize using terminology derived from the archival reference.</p>
<h2>Adding Communities to the Catalog</h2>
<p>This catalog is by no means complete, and I'm always looking for new groups to add, if additional information is available. Please feel free to suggest a community for inclusion using <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe9oGcXtpUNGXXhEBIYdZlb40HTj3EDzG_fk4xltxxcCck6AQ/viewform?usp=sf_link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this form</a>, or email me directly at <a href="mailto:adame@winona.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">adame@winona.edu</a>.</p>
BBS
Bulletin Board System
Area Code
Area Code of BBS
415 area code, later 714 area code
City and State/Province
San Francisco, CA
Year Founded (approximate)
<ul>
<li>Founded 1986</li>
<li>Moved to Gopher in 1994</li>
<li>aidsinfobbs.org opened in 1997</li>
</ul>
Last Year Active (approximate)
Still active
Network/Platform
Networks or Platforms the forum participated in
Computerized AIDS Information Network (CAIN); FidoNet (Node Address: 1:103/927); AEGIS (AIDS Education General Information System) Network (National Hub)
Primary Language
Primary language used by participants
American English
Exterior References
Attached classified ad from <a href="http://digitalassets.lib.berkeley.edu/sfbagals/Sentinal/1989_SFS_Vol17_No17_Apr_.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">San Francisco Sentinel (April 27, 1989)</a><br />
<ul>
<li>Archived version of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/19971222020300/http://aidsinfobbs.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">aidsinfobbs.org</a> (Archived Dec 22, 1997)</li>
<li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/19971222020707/http://aidsinfobbs.org/description.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Description</a> of the web version, written by Ben Gardiner (Archived Dec 22, 1997)</li>
<li><a href="https://paganpressbooks.com/jpl/BEN-TAW.HTM" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Interview with Ben Gardiner</a>, first published in the New York Native (July 30, 1990)</li>
<li><a href="https://archive.org/details/bbsdocumentary-interview-gardiner-2002-07" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Audio interview with sysop Ben Gardiner</a>, conducted by Jason Scott as part of the BBS Documentary (2002)</li>
<li><a href="https://paganpressbooks.com/jpl/BEN.HTM">Obituary for Ben Gardiner</a>, by friend John Lauritsen (2010)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Ben-Gardiner-dies-gay-rights-activist-actor-3271651.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Obituary for Ben Gardiner</a> from the SFGate (Feb 27, 2010)</li>
</ul>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
AIDS Info BBS
AEGIS Network
AIDS Info BBS
bbs
CAIN
FidoNet
people living with HIV/AIDS
-
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Queer Digital Community Catalog
Language
A language of the resource
English
Description
An account of the resource
<p dir="ltr"><span>This catalog collects basic information and resources on LGBTQ-related online communities prior to 2010, particularly those from the so-called Web 1.0 period. Each catalog entry includes information on the group’s format, its approximate dates of activity, its audience and topical focus, and links to other materials discussing the group, such as editorial columns, personal essays, or archival materials.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>One of the driving impulses for the creation of this catalog was to offer a starting place for research into early LGBTQ life online. As I found in my own research, simply knowing the name of a place or person could, in some cases, be key to my archival research. Beyond just its research utility, however, this catalog is also meant to preserve the memory, if not the content, of communities and groups whose names might otherwise be lost or forgotten.<br /></span></p>
<h2>Why a Catalog?</h2>
<p dir="ltr">I’ve chosen to focus on a catalog, as opposed to an archive, for several reasons. Firstly, at its most basic level, an archive is focused on primary material—in this case, the content of posts. However, archiving for most online groups from the mid-1980s up to the late 1990s is often incomplete at best, so in many cases, there’s limited to no archival material available. Instead, what exists in many cases is secondary material, writing describing or reflecting on posters’ experiences with and in these spaces. The catalog, ideally, links these disparate materials together in order to give a slightly fuller picture of the online landscape at any given time.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Secondly, posters in early LGBTQ groups often wrote (sometimes in detail) about close and personal issues in their lives under the assumption that their posts would remain private within the group. Given this, I’ve designed the catalog to respect (to the best of my ability) posters’ initial expectation of privacy. Linked content has all been previously published in other venues, and any other detailed personal reflections submitted by users specifically for the catalog have been made public with their consent.</p>
<h2>What Qualifies A Community For Inclusion?</h2>
<p dir="ltr"><span>There are no specific criteria determining inclusion in the QDCC. However, many of the communitites currently listed in the catalog have multiple references in contemporaneous periodicals, newsletters, web guides, or other LGBTQ-related informational websites. These sources are key for establishing not only the existence of a space, but its particular attributes.</span></p>
<h2 dir="ltr"><strong>On Audience Labels</strong></h2>
<p dir="ltr">All of the communities cataloged include descriptive metadata culled from various sources, including contemporaneous listings in print publications and online reference guides. However, the terminology used in archival sources does not always match current preferred terms. <a href="http://notchesblog.com/2017/11/28/troubling-terms-the-label-problem-in-transgender-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">As has been discussed elsewhere</a>, retroactively applying labels with which individuals or spaces might not have identified is a politically fraught act. In my metadata practices, then, I follow a policy similar to that of the <a href="https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/about/policies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Transgender Archive</a>: whenever possible, I use terminology included in contemporaneous decriptions. If terminology is not used or a detailed description is not available, I categorize using terminology derived from the archival reference.</p>
<h2>Adding Communities to the Catalog</h2>
<p>This catalog is by no means complete, and I'm always looking for new groups to add, if additional information is available. Please feel free to suggest a community for inclusion using <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe9oGcXtpUNGXXhEBIYdZlb40HTj3EDzG_fk4xltxxcCck6AQ/viewform?usp=sf_link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this form</a>, or email me directly at <a href="mailto:adame@winona.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">adame@winona.edu</a>.</p>
BBS Network
Topical Networks of Bulletin Board Systems
Host BBS
BBS that served as primary host for network
Funded by State of California
Year Founded (approximate)
1984
Last Year Active (approximate)
Unknown
Topical Focus
Primary topics of messages shared via network
HIV/AIDS-related information and resources
Exterior References
<ul>
<li><a href="http://digitalassets.lib.berkeley.edu/sfbagals/Sentinal/1985_SFS_Vol13_No06_July_18.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"State OKs Proposal on High Tech Data Service," San Francisco Sentinel (July 18, 1985)</a> - Article discussing the CAIN network and its purpose</li>
<li><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1986/01/26/aids-sufferers-find-solace-in-computer-network/b1c3ec23-76ae-43ee-8c42-c2d8ec3b31ae/?utm_term=.f3b1db20d2cb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"</a><span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1986/01/26/aids-sufferers-find-solace-in-computer-network/b1c3ec23-76ae-43ee-8c42-c2d8ec3b31ae/?utm_term=.f3b1db20d2cb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AIDS Sufferers Find Solace in Computer Network,"</a> Washington Post (Jan 26, 1986) - Discusses use of CAIN and AIDS-focused BBSes</span></li>
<li><a href="http://digitalassets.lib.berkeley.edu/sfbagals/Sentinal/1987_SFS__Vol15_No19_May_08.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"AIDS information by Computer," San Francisco Sentinel (May 8, 1987)</a> - Includes information on accessing CAIN </li>
<li><a href="http://queerdigital.com/items/show/61" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"National AIDS Clearinghouse Guide to AIDS BBSes" (April 2, 1993)</a> - Listing of CAIN member BBSes included in sci.med.aids FAQ.</li>
</ul>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Computerized AIDS Information Network (CAIN)
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
BBS Network
bbs network
CAIN
Computerized AIDS Information Network
people living with HIV/AIDS
-
http://queerdigital.com/files/original/5895d58bc93c8ef7e8dc1f3a28dc1f68.png
7fe02764e4218d5d5c90fa359f027b1a
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Queer Digital Community Catalog
Language
A language of the resource
English
Description
An account of the resource
<p dir="ltr"><span>This catalog collects basic information and resources on LGBTQ-related online communities prior to 2010, particularly those from the so-called Web 1.0 period. Each catalog entry includes information on the group’s format, its approximate dates of activity, its audience and topical focus, and links to other materials discussing the group, such as editorial columns, personal essays, or archival materials.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>One of the driving impulses for the creation of this catalog was to offer a starting place for research into early LGBTQ life online. As I found in my own research, simply knowing the name of a place or person could, in some cases, be key to my archival research. Beyond just its research utility, however, this catalog is also meant to preserve the memory, if not the content, of communities and groups whose names might otherwise be lost or forgotten.<br /></span></p>
<h2>Why a Catalog?</h2>
<p dir="ltr">I’ve chosen to focus on a catalog, as opposed to an archive, for several reasons. Firstly, at its most basic level, an archive is focused on primary material—in this case, the content of posts. However, archiving for most online groups from the mid-1980s up to the late 1990s is often incomplete at best, so in many cases, there’s limited to no archival material available. Instead, what exists in many cases is secondary material, writing describing or reflecting on posters’ experiences with and in these spaces. The catalog, ideally, links these disparate materials together in order to give a slightly fuller picture of the online landscape at any given time.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Secondly, posters in early LGBTQ groups often wrote (sometimes in detail) about close and personal issues in their lives under the assumption that their posts would remain private within the group. Given this, I’ve designed the catalog to respect (to the best of my ability) posters’ initial expectation of privacy. Linked content has all been previously published in other venues, and any other detailed personal reflections submitted by users specifically for the catalog have been made public with their consent.</p>
<h2>What Qualifies A Community For Inclusion?</h2>
<p dir="ltr"><span>There are no specific criteria determining inclusion in the QDCC. However, many of the communitites currently listed in the catalog have multiple references in contemporaneous periodicals, newsletters, web guides, or other LGBTQ-related informational websites. These sources are key for establishing not only the existence of a space, but its particular attributes.</span></p>
<h2 dir="ltr"><strong>On Audience Labels</strong></h2>
<p dir="ltr">All of the communities cataloged include descriptive metadata culled from various sources, including contemporaneous listings in print publications and online reference guides. However, the terminology used in archival sources does not always match current preferred terms. <a href="http://notchesblog.com/2017/11/28/troubling-terms-the-label-problem-in-transgender-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">As has been discussed elsewhere</a>, retroactively applying labels with which individuals or spaces might not have identified is a politically fraught act. In my metadata practices, then, I follow a policy similar to that of the <a href="https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/about/policies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Transgender Archive</a>: whenever possible, I use terminology included in contemporaneous decriptions. If terminology is not used or a detailed description is not available, I categorize using terminology derived from the archival reference.</p>
<h2>Adding Communities to the Catalog</h2>
<p>This catalog is by no means complete, and I'm always looking for new groups to add, if additional information is available. Please feel free to suggest a community for inclusion using <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe9oGcXtpUNGXXhEBIYdZlb40HTj3EDzG_fk4xltxxcCck6AQ/viewform?usp=sf_link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this form</a>, or email me directly at <a href="mailto:adame@winona.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">adame@winona.edu</a>.</p>
BBS
Bulletin Board System
Name
Name of Forum
Fog City BBS
Area Code
Area Code of BBS
415 Area Code
City and State/Province
San Francisco, CA
Year Founded (approximate)
1986
Last Year Active (approximate)
Unknown
Network/Platform
Networks or Platforms the forum participated in
Gaycom; Computerized AIDS Information Network (CAIN); AEGIS (AIDS Education General Information System) Network
Baud Rate
Unknown
Intended Audience
The forum's intended audience
Gay people, People living with HIV/AIDS
Primary Language
Primary language used by participants
American English
Exterior References
<ul>
<li><a href="http://digitalassets.lib.berkeley.edu/sfbagals/Sentinal/sfs_index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Regular advertiser in San Francisco Sentinel in 1988-1989 (advertisement attached)</a></li>
<li>Host of <a href="https://archive.org/details/hypercard_caper-in-the-castro" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Caper in the Casto</a>, first LGBTQ video game</li>
<li><a href="http://queerdigital.com/items/show/61" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"National AIDS Clearinghouse Guide to AIDS BBSes" (April 2, 1993)</a> - Listed in Guide, which is included in sci.med.aids FAQ.</li>
</ul>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Fog City BBS
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Bulletin Board System
AEGIS Network
bbs
CAIN
gay people
GayCom
people living with HIV/AIDS
-
http://queerdigital.com/files/original/19be8cb928c41369be0ddb306639807c.png
60c811ae85eb4ebb54a63ee60fab3be5
http://queerdigital.com/files/original/ccde54a717f5ea0a12af7d5e8b0a75aa.pdf
91f744f671122ca16300f2037d67f7d1
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Queer Digital Community Catalog
Language
A language of the resource
English
Description
An account of the resource
<p dir="ltr"><span>This catalog collects basic information and resources on LGBTQ-related online communities prior to 2010, particularly those from the so-called Web 1.0 period. Each catalog entry includes information on the group’s format, its approximate dates of activity, its audience and topical focus, and links to other materials discussing the group, such as editorial columns, personal essays, or archival materials.</span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><span>One of the driving impulses for the creation of this catalog was to offer a starting place for research into early LGBTQ life online. As I found in my own research, simply knowing the name of a place or person could, in some cases, be key to my archival research. Beyond just its research utility, however, this catalog is also meant to preserve the memory, if not the content, of communities and groups whose names might otherwise be lost or forgotten.<br /></span></p>
<h2>Why a Catalog?</h2>
<p dir="ltr">I’ve chosen to focus on a catalog, as opposed to an archive, for several reasons. Firstly, at its most basic level, an archive is focused on primary material—in this case, the content of posts. However, archiving for most online groups from the mid-1980s up to the late 1990s is often incomplete at best, so in many cases, there’s limited to no archival material available. Instead, what exists in many cases is secondary material, writing describing or reflecting on posters’ experiences with and in these spaces. The catalog, ideally, links these disparate materials together in order to give a slightly fuller picture of the online landscape at any given time.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Secondly, posters in early LGBTQ groups often wrote (sometimes in detail) about close and personal issues in their lives under the assumption that their posts would remain private within the group. Given this, I’ve designed the catalog to respect (to the best of my ability) posters’ initial expectation of privacy. Linked content has all been previously published in other venues, and any other detailed personal reflections submitted by users specifically for the catalog have been made public with their consent.</p>
<h2>What Qualifies A Community For Inclusion?</h2>
<p dir="ltr"><span>There are no specific criteria determining inclusion in the QDCC. However, many of the communitites currently listed in the catalog have multiple references in contemporaneous periodicals, newsletters, web guides, or other LGBTQ-related informational websites. These sources are key for establishing not only the existence of a space, but its particular attributes.</span></p>
<h2 dir="ltr"><strong>On Audience Labels</strong></h2>
<p dir="ltr">All of the communities cataloged include descriptive metadata culled from various sources, including contemporaneous listings in print publications and online reference guides. However, the terminology used in archival sources does not always match current preferred terms. <a href="http://notchesblog.com/2017/11/28/troubling-terms-the-label-problem-in-transgender-history/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">As has been discussed elsewhere</a>, retroactively applying labels with which individuals or spaces might not have identified is a politically fraught act. In my metadata practices, then, I follow a policy similar to that of the <a href="https://www.digitaltransgenderarchive.net/about/policies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Transgender Archive</a>: whenever possible, I use terminology included in contemporaneous decriptions. If terminology is not used or a detailed description is not available, I categorize using terminology derived from the archival reference.</p>
<h2>Adding Communities to the Catalog</h2>
<p>This catalog is by no means complete, and I'm always looking for new groups to add, if additional information is available. Please feel free to suggest a community for inclusion using <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe9oGcXtpUNGXXhEBIYdZlb40HTj3EDzG_fk4xltxxcCck6AQ/viewform?usp=sf_link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this form</a>, or email me directly at <a href="mailto:adame@winona.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">adame@winona.edu</a>.</p>
BBS
Bulletin Board System
Name
Name of Forum
Gay and Lesbian Information Bureau
Area Code
Area Code of BBS
703 Area Code
City and State/Province
Arlington, VA
Abbreviations/Alias
Any other names used to refer to this forum
GLIB
Year Founded (approximate)
1986
Last Year Active (approximate)
2001
Baud Rate
Unknown
Intended Audience
The forum's intended audience
Gay people; Lesbian people; People with HIV/AIDS
Primary Language
Primary language used by participants
American English
Exterior References
Attached advertisement from <a href="https://archive.org/details/Boardwatch_Magazine_Vol_09_03_1995_Mar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">March 1995 issue of <em>Boardwatch Magazine</em></a>. Attached letter of thanks was mailed by President Bill Clinton to GLIB sysop John Larimore for their work on the campaign.<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://bbslist.textfiles.com/703/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GLIB's listing in the Textfiles.com BBS List</a></li>
<li><a href="https://youtu.be/TNQHQG6g0Sc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gay Fairfax: Episode #26 (1991)</a> - Recorded presentation by sysop Jon Larimore about GLIB, its services, and BBSes in general</li>
<li><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1994/09/15/glib-users-are-talking-it-up/92d19833-ac76-4029-aee4-0862a7d4acaf/?utm_term=.816c8f0bbab7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GLIB: Users are Talking It Up (Sept 15, 1994)</a> - Short Washington Post piece on GLIB</li>
<li><a href="http://queerdigital.com/items/show/61" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"National AIDS Clearinghouse Guide to AIDS BBSes" (April 2, 1993)</a> - Listed in Guide, which is included in sci.med.aids FAQ.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.bbsdocumentary.com/mp3/93BBSCON/bw100.txt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Boardwatch Top 100 (1993)</a> - Includes GLIB at #5</li>
<li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/19970228045752/http://www.glib.org:80/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GLIB.org (archived Feb 28, 1997)</a> - Archived version of GLIB website, which BBS converted to in 1999</li>
<li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20001203044100/http://www.glib.org/whatglib.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What is GLIB? (archived Dec 3, 2000)</a> - Informational page on the history of GLIB</li>
</ul>
Sponsor or Institutional Host
Organizations that hosted, sponsored, or maintained the forum
Community Educational Services Foundation (CESF)
Network/Platform
Networks or Platforms the forum participated in
GayCom, CAIN
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Gay and Lesbian Information Bureau (GLIB)
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Bulletin Board System
bbs
CAIN
Gay and Lesbian Information Bureau
gay people
GLIB
lesbian people
people living with HIV/AIDS