+ Changed since last version
* New since last version
This Document Copyright © 1994, 1995 by the Echoes Mailing List and its Members. For questions on distribution, contact: echoes-faq@fawnya.tcs.com
Note that this document assumes a fair amount of technical knowledge -- there are no in-depth instructions on how to FTP, or how to connect to the WWW, etc. It's assumed that if you're not sure how to do something, you will take the responsibility to contact the appropriate Usenet help group, or to talk to your University computing center or the MIS/IT area of your employer. Please don't ask "how to" questions on the Pink Floyd newsgroups, mailing lists, or other forums where it's just not appropriate. Thanks!
All of these sites offer access to Pink Floyd-related materials via anonymous logins. What this means is that (on most sytems) you type
ftp <sitename>
Then you login as "anonymous" (or type "login anonymous," depending on the system). For the password, enter your username@address. Once you're in, use the
cd <directory>
command to change to the Pink Floyd directory. Use the "dir" command to get a list of what's in the directory. Use the command
get <filename>
to retrieve a file back to your home site. Be sure to use the "binary" command before you get any non-text file. You can use the "exit" command to return to your home site.
Site: ftp://ftp.uwp.edu/
Directory: pub/music/artists/p/pink.floyd
Description:
Mirror of the halcyon site, and also more pictures and other information.
This is one of the Internet's main music sites, and this sort of info is
available there for most groups.
Site: ftp://ftp.twi.tudelft.nl/
Directory:
pub/music
Description:
Info on the '94 album and tour. Up-to-date list of dates for the tour,
the sets they have played so far, and assorted PF rumours.
Site: humper.student.princeton.edu
Directory:
floyd
Description:
A mirror of what's on the WWW site (which in turn is mostly what's on
halcyon, though there is some unique stuff).
Site: ftp://ftp.cs.pdx.edu/
Directory: pub/Publius
Description: A
collection of the Publius information available from echoserv. Includes a
history of all past Publius posts.
Site: ftp://ftp.ulaval.ca/
Directory: contrib/Images
Description:
Pictures from the '94 tour.
Site: ftp://ftp.nevada.edu/
Directory: pub/guitar/p/pink_floyd
Description:
Guitar tabs for some Floyd songs.
Yes, you can, through the miracles of "FTPmail." The gist of FTPmail is that you send the commands necessary to log into an FTP site and retrieve a file to a special mail server, and that server will log in and get the file for you, and then send it to you as a mail message.
This is real easy for text files, but there's a slight problem with binary (picture, sound, non-text) files -- if you mail them in unmodified form, they'll get trashed. This is solved by having the FTPmail site convert the binary file to text when it sends it to you, and then you can convert it back to a binary format when you get it.
The most common method for doing this is through UUencoding and UUdecoding. FTPmail can easily UUencode a binary file, and UUdecoders for most computer systems are readily available. The only problem is that, of course, if you're reading this, you can't just FTP one, and you can't get one via FTPmail 'cause you can't decode it. So you'll have to call a local BBS, computer user group, or find some other way of getting one. Note also that most Unix systems have UUencoding/decoding software available.
To use FTPmail, send the message
help
to the address ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com
This will send you a help file explaining how to use the FTPmail server. It includes some examples, but I'll provide a further one. Say you want to get the 1993 Rockline Interview with Roger Waters (recommended reading, as are most of the interviews). Using the index to ftp://ftp.halcyon.com/ in Q9.2, you would send the following to the FTPmail server:
connect ftp.halcyon.com ascii chdir local/pink_floyd/interviews get waters.rockline.93 quit
FTPmail will shortly send you back a message saying it received your request. It often takes a day or two for the request to process, as many other people use this service.
Yes, there are several. The following is a list of just a few main ones; links to many others are available at the WWWall, listed below. To use any of these you'll need a program that lets you browse the Web -- such as Mosaic, NetScape, or Lynx.
In early 1994, a Usenet group devoted to Pink Floyd, "alt.music.pink-floyd", was created. It has proved to be extremely popular, with 50-100+ posts a day in its first few months of existence. The group serves as a forum to discuss any and all Floyd-related subjects, and also the various non-Waters solo projects.
Shortly after the creation of a.m.p-f, a newsgroup dedicated to discussion of Roger Waters, "alt.music.roger-waters", was established. Topics covered by this group include both Roger's solo albums and his work with Pink Floyd. (There is, naturally, a fair amount of overlap between a.m.p-f and a.m.r-w.) This group has more limited distribution than the Pink Floyd group -- you may have to talk to your System Administrator in order to receive it.
A few general comments on both groups:
Also, you might want to check out "alt.music.progressive" -- things Floydian are sometimes discussed there as well. Finally, Pink Floyd-related pictures are also occasionaly posted to the "alt.binaries.pictures.misc" newsgroup. You can request a specific picture by posting in the "alt.binaries.pictures.d" group.
Pink Floyd fans across the Internet have amassed a fair amount of information about the band and its activities. The archives at ftp.halcyon.com and the echoserv mail-server are the main repositories for such files; see Questions 9.2 and 7.1.
However, several of these resources merit special note...
Many Floyd albums don't come with lyrics. Some have certain lyrics wrong. And none tell you anything about those background voices that grace so many of the Floyd's songs...
As a result, you can find annotated lyric files to just about all Pink Floyd and solo member albums at: ftp://ftp.halcyon.com/ in local/pink_floyd/lyrics
While in most cases it's pretty obvious, on some Floyd songs there are always questions about who in fact is singing. The VocalList file answers those questions -- it lists the vocalist for pretty much every song that Pink Floyd recorded. It also adds album and song credits, and the first and last time each song was performed live.
The most recent edition of the VocalList can be obtained by mailing to "echoserv@fawnya.tcs.com" the following, lowercase and left-justified:
mail vocallist.3.00 echoes quit
Maintained by Gerhard den Hollander (Gerhard@jason.nl)
Over the years, the members of Pink Floyd have participated in a number of other projects. This file lists albums and songs that Pink Floyd members, or their associates, produced, played on, or were otherwise involved with.
The most recent version of the Guest Work file can be obtained by mailing to "echoserv@fawnya.tcs.com" the following:
mail guest.work echoes quit
It can also be found on the ftp.halcyon.com FTP archive (see Q9.2) Maintained by Aaro Koskinen (Aaro.Koskinen@Helsinki.FI)
Information about all aspects of the current Pink Floyd world tour is available, largely through the efforts of Piet de Bondt. Files available are:
These can be accessed through the WWW, via anonymous FTP, and by e-mail from the "echoes-tour" database (see Q2, Q1.1, and Q7.1, respectively).
Being the popular band that they are, Pink Floyd's songs have been the object of covers by many artists. A list of these songs, the artists that covered them, and what album/single they can be found on is available at
ftp://ftp.halcyon.com/ in local/pink_floyd/lists/cover.songs
This is also maintained by Aaro Koskinen (Aaro.Koskinen@Helsinki.FI)
Internet Relay Chat is basically a super version of the standard 'net TALK program. TALK lets two people on opposite ends of the Earth talk to each other in real time -- what one types shows up on the other's computer as it's typed, and vice versa (well, it shows up as it's typed if you have a good connection ;)
IRC lets many, many people talk to each other in this manner. To keep things from getting too chaotic, it's organized into "channels" devoted to particular topics. The main Pink Floyd IRC channel to use is
#pinkfloyd
which is generally kept open all the time. Occasionaly, some annoying soul will take it over and make it invite-only. In this case, you might try
#pinkfloyd2
For more information on IRC, its use, conventions, etc., you should read the IRC FAQ, posted often to the "alt.irc" Usenet newsgroup and available via FTP at "ftp://ftp.undernet.org/" in the "/irc/docs" directory. If you have questions about how to use IRC, alt.irc is the place to direct them.
echoes is a mailing list devoted to Pink Floyd. It has been running for about three years now. It replaces a list called "Eclipse" that ran for several years previous. There are roughly 1000 members of echoes, on (at last count) 5 continents.
echoes is available in two formats: realtime and digest. "Realtime" means that you get messages as soon as they are sent by other members. The "digest" format is composed of all the realtime postings: they are grouped together in a more compact format, mailed out once a day or so.
echoes is a very active list: expect 50-100 messages a day (or 35k to 150k per day). With traffic already so high, we try to avoid certain topics that we've found do more harm than good. "Taboo" topics include:
Nor is it the place to try out a big .sig -- no matter how "cool" it is. In contrast, some typical echoes topics:
In other words, there isn't much talked about on echoes that isn't talked about in the newsgroups or other forums. Rather, it's that subset of topics that is most appropriate for a mailing list setting of knowledgeable fans. As such, we try to keep the signal to noise ratio as high as possible and don't take kindly to folks who only want to contribute to the noise portion. If you violate these echoes by-laws, actions include everything from warnings to being dropped from echoes to having a talk with your SysAdmin. Sadly (or fortunately) this has only had to happen twice in 3 years.
(Appologies for the strictness of this description, but it seems to help avoid trouble if folks know all this in advance.)
If you are interested in joining echoes, mail to
with the following message:
help quit
This will send you subscription information.
Yes, there are a great many musical mailing lists on the 'net. To get a list of them all (The List of Musical Mailing Lists), do one of the following:
get faq lomml.txt
send lomml
In addition to handling echoes subscription routines (Q10), echoserv has stored, and can send you on request, back issues of the echoes digest and assorted other files of interest. At this point, these files are divided into several different databases. Each database contains its own distinct set of files--think of them as different directories.
All commands to echoserv should be lowercase and left-justified, with the "quit" command included (if necessary) at the end of the message, before any .sig
For a complete "manual" for echoserv, beyond what is covered here, use the command "help"
To obtain a list of available files, mail to echoserv
and use the "filelist" command:
filelist <database>
where <database> should be replaced with the name of the directory you'd like a listing of. Valid values are listed below. Do not enter the word "<database>." This will cause an error and just send your mail back to you, as there's no database called "<database>."
As of August '95 the current databases are:
Other databases may be added from time to time. To get a list of the currently available databases use the "index" command.
To contribute to the RoIO database, get a copy of the blank RoIO description form, fill it out, and send it to "roio-maint@fawnya.tcs.com" [See P1Q18] Send submissions for the other databases directly to bear ("echoes-request@fawnya.tcs.com").
To get individual files from echoserv, you use the "mail"/"send" commands (they are interchangable).
To get volume 1 number 1 of the echoes digest, use the following command:
mail echoes.digest.v1n1 echoes-vol1
Requests for other issues (and, later, other volumes) are constructed in the obvious manner. As of January 22, 1995, the current digest is v4n70.
To get a list of available Eclipse archives, send the command:
filelist eclipse
If you know the specific date you want, you can get the file directly, as the date is part of the name:
send eclipsed.30aug90 eclipse send eclipsed.01feg91 eclipse
Note: the filename has eclipse in the past tense (i.e. "eclipsed")
The 5 parts of the FAQ are also stored on echoserv, and can be sent to you. They are in the "echoes" database, and the filenames are:
echoes.faq.3.0 (this document) echoes.faq.3.1 echoes.faq.3.2 echoes.faq.3.3 echoes.faq.3.4
So, to get Part 2, you would use the command
send echoes.faq.3.2 echoes
Note that many mailers choke at about 100K characters, and the FAQ runs well beyond that. If you have problems, let me know, and I can send you the FAQ in smaller chunks.
Considering that the Floyd have always been something of a leading-edge, multimedia band, their releases in this area have been few and far between; just the two MPEG-1 CD-ROM releases, The Wall and Delicate Sound of Thunder. Of course, there's all this-text based information to keep you happy, but if you're looking for more...
There are a lot, mostly of so-so quality. All the ones I've gotten hold of are in the "sounds" directory at halcyon; among them are:
There are also a fair number of older ROL and CMF files, for the original Adlib and SoundBlaster cards, that I've haven't bothered with. If anyone comes across any sound files (particularly good ones!), that aren't already available at halcyon, could you do us all a favor and please upload them?
As a promotional item, EMI has released a Pulse computer screensaver. It features pictures from the last tour, facts and trivia, birthdays and lists of equipment for Gilmour, Wright and Mason, and artwork and tracklists from Pulse. If your computer is sound-capable, you'll also hear intro music from "High Hopes," Learning to Fly," "Time," and other songs, as well as crowd noise.
Versions of the screensaver for Mac and Windows computers are available at ftp.halcyon.com in the "misc" directory. There's also a factual mistake in the screensaver text; it claims that the October 20th, 1994 performance of DSotM was the first in 20 years, when it had in fact been performed earlier on the tour.
There is currently a Pink Floyd Archive Site at ftp://ftp.halcyon.com/. This site includes lyrics, interviews, articles, and other info, but no actual archives of the echoes list (those are available via echoserv).
Because of problems with people uploading pirated software, uploads to halcyon are handled via e-mail only. To submit something for the archives, send it to:
Be sure to include a short description of what the file is, and what directory it should go into. Files should be send UUencoded. Whenever you type up an article, come across a picture you haven't seen before, etc., please upload a copy to the archives, so that people years from now will be able to take advantage of them.
To give you an idea what's available, and to make things easier for FTPmail users, here's a list of what's available at ftp://ftp.halcyon.com/ as of August 1.
Note: the "." before the directory name stands for "local/pink_floyd" -- thus, "post.1993" is located in "local/pink_floyd/articles/post.1993"
./articles/post.1993 ./articles/news.clips ./articles/syd.nme.1974 ./articles/press.release.94tour ./articles/barrett.opel ./articles/record.coll.1992.2 ./articles/ezrin.feb93 ./articles/Index ./articles/atd.sep92 ./articles/Q.1991 ./articles/TAP_SONG_LIST ./articles/Q.thorgerson.1992 ./articles/Q.waters.1992 ./articles/barret.rc.1993 ./articles/barrett.1978 ./articles/atd.billboard.1992 ./articles/compleat.top.gear ./articles/record.collector.1992 ./articles/barrett.roio ./articles/syd_studio_sessions ./articles/hyde.bomb ./articles/mojo.txt ./articles/melody.aug67 ./articles/globe.1992 ./articles/melody.dec67
./discographies/rarities.pricing.93 ./discographies/single.list ./discographies/uk.disc.1 ./discographies/Index ./discographies/maple.disc ./discographies/cd.singles ./discographies/waters.1 ./discographies/floyd.disc1 ./discographies/discog
./interviews/snowy.white ./interviews/waters.penthouse ./interviews/syd.roio ./interviews/waters.rockline.93 ./interviews/waters.rcd.1992 ./interviews/gilmour-july-94 ./interviews/wywh.gilmour ./interviews/sound.bites ./interviews/wywh.roger ./interviews/waters.nov.92 ./interviews/peter.watts ./interviews/gilmour.source ./interviews/waters.wall ./interviews/waters.la_times.1992 ./interviews/.places3_0.wmd ./interviews/gilmour.rcd.1992 ./interviews/parsons.feb93 ./interviews/gilmour.Q.1990 ./interviews/waters.1987 ./interviews/barrett.1971 ./interviews/shades.of.pink ./interviews/waters.bbc.1990 ./interviews/Index ./interviews/syd.nme.1974 ./interviews/gilmour.musician.1992 ./interviews/waters.germany.92 ./interviews/water-nytimes-june-1994 ./interviews/guitar-world-sep-94
./lists/cover.songs ./lists/pf-roio-1 ./lists/tour.list ./lists/pf-roio-2 ./lists/vocallist ./lists/pf-roio-2 ./lists/solo-roio ./lists/videotapes ./lists/echoserv.help ./lists/Index ./lists/guest.work ./lists/article.list ./lists/never.live ./lists/index.subjects.vol1 ./lists/never.live.202 ./lists/early.performances ./lists/index.issues.vol1
./lyrics/about.face ./lyrics/radio.kaos ./lyrics/14.division ./lyrics/david.gilmour ./lyrics/01.piper ./lyrics/08.dsotm ./lyrics/09.wywh ./lyrics/wind.blows ./lyrics/06.meddle ./lyrics/vocalist.3.00 ./lyrics/10.animals ./lyrics/wa.1.the.body ./lyrics/wet.dream ./lyrics/00.singles ./lyrics/prosncons ./lyrics/02.saucerful ./lyrics/03.more ./lyrics/07.obscured ./lyrics/04.ummagumma ./lyrics/12.finalcut ./lyrics/05.atomheart ./lyrics/13.momentarylapse ./lyrics/11.wall ./lyrics/ficticious.sports ./lyrics/syd.barrett ./lyrics/wa.3.radio.kaos ./lyrics/amused.to.death ./lyrics/Index
./misc/oracle.answer ./misc/chords.more.early ./misc/dstom.cds ./misc/chords.tfc ./misc/hair.survey ./misc/chords.early ./misc/rmm.poll ./misc/chords.anthology.3 ./misc/Index ./misc/chords.anthology.4 ./misc/prosncons.xcrpt ./misc/chords.dsotm ./misc/rmcd.jan93 ./misc/chords.green.color ./misc/chords.anthology.1 ./misc/1992.echoes.poll ./misc/kaos.xcrpt ./misc/berlin.promo ./misc/prosncons.explanation ./misc/chords.anthology.2 ./misc/jrf.faq ./misc/drug.survey ./misc/echoes.poll ./misc/drugs.paper ./misc/kaos.intro ./misc/echoes.nov92.poll ./misc/chords.wywh ./misc/montreal.1977 ./misc/chords.mlor ./misc/oracle.answer.2 ./misc/pf_screen_saver.zip
./reviews/atd.vinyl ./reviews/the.man ./reviews/dsotm.xx ./reviews/tlamlil ./reviews/syd.box ./reviews/wall.rehearsal ./reviews/bbc.sessions ./reviews/1974.program ./reviews/atd.la_times ./reviews/animals.thoughts ./reviews/Index ./reviews/atd.sony.mstr ./reviews/panamerica ./reviews/berlin.90.promos ./reviews/cowl.berlin ./reviews/knebworth.90 ./reviews/one.world ./reviews/shine.on.ice ./reviews/atd.miami ./reviews/knebworth.3 ./reviews/terrapin.box
./echoes_faq/echoes.faq.3.0 ./echoes_faq/echoes.html ./echoes_faq/echoes.faq.3.1 ./echoes_faq/echoes0.html ./echoes_faq/echoes.faq.3.2 ./echoes_faq/echoes1.html ./echoes_faq/echoes.faq.3.3 ./echoes_faq/echoes2.html ./echoes_faq/echoes.faq.3.4 ./echoes_faq/echoes3.html ./echoes_faq/demo_faq.doc ./echoes_faq/echoes4.html
WAVs
./sounds/wav/echoes.wav ./sounds/wav/pillow.wav ./sounds/wav/fearless.wav ./sounds/wav/ootd.wav ./sounds/wav/message.wav ./sounds/wav/floyd95.wav ./sounds/wav/several.wav
MODs
./sounds/mod/SOYCD1.mod ./sounds/mod/money.mod ./sounds/mod/SOYCD2.mod
MIDIs
./sounds/midi/pfabitw.mid ./sounds/midi/pfsheep.mid ./sounds/midi/pfbike.mid ./sounds/midi/pfshine.mid ./sounds/midi/pfbreath.mid ./sounds/midi/pftime.mid ./sounds/midi/pfcomfor.mid ./sounds/midi/pfusthem.mid ./sounds/midi/pffincut.mid ./sounds/midi/pfwywh.mid ./sounds/midi/pfheyyou.mid
Other
./sounds/other/POTWSOLO.ZIP ./sounds/other/pfbreath.cmf ./sounds/other/anybody.amf ./sounds/other/pfbreath.rol ./sounds/other/bluesky.amf ./sounds/other/pftime.cmf ./sounds/other/goodbye.amf ./sounds/other/pftime.rol ./sounds/other/greatgig.zip ./sounds/other/pfwywh.txt ./sounds/other/nilesong.amf ./sounds/other/hh.s3m ./sounds/other/ovrdrive.amf ./sounds/other/if.s3m
./3_shades_of_pink/3shades1.txt ./3_shades_of_pink/3shades4.txt ./3_shades_of_pink/3shades2.txt ./3_shades_of_pink/3shades5.txt ./3_shades_of_pink/3shades3.txt ./3_shades_of_pink/3shades6.txt
Here is information on how to subscribe and unsubscribe, how to post, and how to get in touch with bear, the list administrator. If you join echoes, it might be a good idea to print this section out and keep it handy, in case you forget one of the addresses, etc.
First of all, make sure you're logged onto the address you want echoes to be sent to. Then, send mail to
"echoserv" is a mail-based list processor. It will read your message, one line at a time, and respond to each command. The subject line is irrelevant. All commands should be lowercase, and left-justified (even though they're indented here, just to confuse you ;)
If you must include a .sig file at the end of your message, you should use the "quit" command at the end of the list of commands, before your .sig, to make sure echoserv knows when to stop parsing.
So, to subscribe, use the following commands:
For realtime mode:
add-realtime echoes quit
For digest mode:
add echoes quit
And, if you want both:
add-realtime echoes add echoes quit
Unsubscribing is also handled through echoserv. Send mail to
With the commands: delete echoes quit
Basically, you unsubscribe yourself from one and then subscribe yourself to the other.
Again, mail to
To change from realtime to digest, you would say:
delete echoes add echoes quit
Or, to go from digest to realtime, it would be:
delete echoes add-realtime echoes quit
You will, unfortunately, be sent all the subscription material (like this document) again when you switch.
To submit a posting to the list, send it to
This will immeadiately broadcast your message to all realtime subscribers (including yourself, if you are on realtime). At the end of the day (about 11:58 Pacific), all the posts sent to echoes that day are grouped together and mailed out to digest subscribers as one large file.
Please observe the posting guidelines, listed in Q11. In addition, please don't ever post lines beginning with the string "From " or the ~ character -- these cause problems.
If you have any problems with echoes, echoserv, or other aspects of the list, and would like to talk to the list administrator (bear), the address is: echoes-request@fawnya.tcs.com
If you find the echoserv subscribing/unsubscribing commands too confusing or hard to remember, you can use this address for these functions as well. Just realise that response won't be as instantaneous as with echoserv.
The following posting guidelines were agreed upon by echoes members:
the syntax is:
unsubscribe echoes quit
(both lines justified to the left margin in the message body)
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