WME does not have a long history, but it does have a colorful one.The Net was started in April 1992 by Randy Hunt. Originally called TTN, The TriTel Network, it was conceived as a support system for sysops of the new TriTel BBS Software. The name quickly Change to The TriBBS Network after a software name change.
After several months, Randy had to step down due personal reasons, and Mark Goodwin, the TriBBS Author took over. During the next 6 months,TTN grew at an astounding rate.
By now, TTN was getting a very good reputation as a friendly network, and many non TriBBS sysops were interested in joining. So as not to have a conflict of interest, Mark Goodwin stepped down as NC and a major reorganization began. Many new and innovative ideas were conceived, and these ideas are now a mainstay of many other Networks.
The first major change was from one NC to a group of people, acting together,providing administrative duties for the net. This was accomplished with the Co-Team Concept. A group of sysops, working together, to provide the net with the needed support. This Co-Team does not set policy, rather, it helps enforce it. This concept has since turned up in many other nets.
The second major change was to develop a set up guidelines that gave member BBS' a voice in administrative matters. These guidelines granted the member sysops the opportunity to vote on changes to the guidelines, Conferences, as well as Co-Team members. This was the first time a network of this size had attempted this, and so far, it has worked out very well.
Finally, the name was changed to better reflect the world wide distribution,With nodes in Germany, England, France, and South Africa. This new name is the same as it is now......The World Message Exchange!
The members of the original Co-team were Joe Klemmer, Steve Sears, Sean McClanahan, Joe Johnson, and Doug Munson. Most of these members have since moved on, but two remain, Steve and Doug.
From March of 93 to the last summer, there were many hard times for WME.The rapid growth of the network caused many problems that had to be handled.From the Great Dupe Flood of 93 (caused by a couple systems doing both QWK and FTN), to the crash of the Net Host system. These issues caused a near fracturing of the net, but calmer heads prevailed, and WME survived this difficult time.
There have been many changes from that time. The network grew to a size that was undreamed of by it's originators. And with this growth has come a number of "growing pains" Each of which has been dealt with by the Co-Team,and the member sysops. Co-Team members came and went. Keith Kolbo, Brad Reddikop, John Boden, Larry Kilgore, Richard Cycholl, and Glenda Kennedy have all worked for the team and since left. Each having been replaced by the vote of the member sysops.
Lately, the Internet has taken it toll. It seems that many sysops are taking their boards offline because of the loss of users. This has caused WME to become a leaner Net, but had not hurt the quality of the net at all.The remaining systems offer many great users, and sysop, and we all have a good time, while providing help and friendship to our fellow members.
And that is the condensed version of the History of WME. While we are only four years old, we have grown to a size and state that's much more than a lot of older nets. With the help of all the users of WME, we will continue to get better and better every year.