- NET_RESOURCES.TXT (1/1) On Line FAQ
Ralph Lindberg & Ellen Winnie
=============================================
= PERIODIC POSTING =
= Online information for Camping and RVąs =
=============================================
This is the periodic posting of Online resources for Camping and
Recreational Vehicles, which is posted on the first of each month to the
following newsgroups, alt.rv, alt.rec.camping, rec.outdoors.camping,
rec.outdoors.rv-travel. This edition contains URL tags that should be
readable by HTML smart readers, such as Netscape 2.0 and YA-
Newswatcher
This FAQ will also be available via WWW. The WWW site is
<http://kendaco.telebyte.net/rlindber/RV/online.html>
This is revision 1.7 of the FAQ dated 1 May 1997.
Complied by Ralph Lindberg <n7...@callsign.net> Please contact
Ralph Lindberg with suggestions, changes, additions, etc
**********************************************************
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
**********************************************************
This FAQ is Copyright (C) 1995 by Ralph Lindberg and the members of the
UseNet community for their individual contributions. All rights reserved.
Permission is hereby granted to use, copy and redistribute this FAQ in
whole or part by any means for any purpose so long the following
conditions are met:
1 - The distribution is not done for profit.
2 - The distributed portion of the document is not modified.
3 - The distributed copy contains instructions about where to get
the latest version.
4 - If the copy is imbedded in any publication (Print, CD-ROM etc.)
one copy must be delivered to authorąs free of charge.
Any reproduction or of distribution of this FAQ in whole or part by any
means, implies agreement with the above conditions unless written (non-
electronic) permission to the contrary is obtained from the author.
**********************************************************
DISCLAIMER!
**********************************************************
While the information contained in this FAQ was carefully collected and
compiled to be as accurate as possible, there are no expressed or implied
warranties that the information contained herein is correct, of any value,
or suitable for any purpose. If you use this information in any way, you
assume full responsibility for the results of your actions. In no event will
the author, or others be liable for any results or the lack thereof.
Neither of the compilers have any connection with any of the business that
may be mentioned in the FAQ except possibly as a satisfied customer
unless there is a specific statement to the contrary in the text.
Please note: if your news reader puts strange characters, where double
and single quotes might be being used. The fault is the character set my
news program uses is not the same as the character set yours uses. I am
working on fixing this problem.
**********************************************************
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
Copyright and Disclaimer.
1.0 Advertising on the net
2.0 Related news groups, and email lists
2.1 Newsgroups
2.2 Email lists
3 WWW and INTERNET resources.
3.1 RV and Camping Camping Dealers
3.2 RV Loans
3.3 RV rentals
3.4 General Camping Supllies
3.5 What RV Parks are on the Net?
3.6 RV Manufacturers
4 . Other resources and selected personal home pages
4.1 Clubs. Rallys, etc
4.2 Government Links
4.3 Books & Magizines
4.4 Other Misc
4.5 Other Commercial
5.0 Net Resources on the Road
**********************************************************
1.1 Advertising on the net
Ralph writes
--------------------------
While there are few rules in Usenet, posting an ad for an unrelated
product to a newsgroup is a certain way to make enemies. I can say for
certain that as of this writing (two weeks after the creation of
rec.outdoors.rv-travel) one persons un-related ad to rec.outdoors.rv-travel
has cost him his net access. I can and will complain to the site admin of
any poster that sends out an unrelated ad. Many providers cancel accounts
for this activity.
I will include pointers (email or a URL) for related businesses in the
FAQ. In addtion there is a newsgroup made just for marketing your outdoor
related item. <news:rec.outdoors.markplace>
*********************************************************
2 Related news group and email lists
---------------------------------------------
Many will enjoy these groups as they relate to travel, camping and related
subjects.
2.1 Newsgroups
<news:rec.outdoors.camping>- The main General Camping newsgroup
<news:rec.outdoors.rv-travel>- The main RV newsgroup
<news:alt.rv.airstream>- An newsgroup just for Airstream
<news:rec.outdoors.markplace>- The Outdoor newsgroup for buying and
selling
<news:rec.backcountry> - Activities in the great outdoors, mostly the
backcountry
rec.outdoors.fishing.* - A hierarchy about aspects of sport and commercial
fishing
<news:rec.outdoors.national>-parks - Just that, all nationsą national parks
<news:rec.parks.theme> - Entertainment theme parks
rec.travel.*- A hierarchy about travel and travel ideas
<news:alt.rv>- The old RV newsgroup, receives very few posts now.
<news:alt.rec.camping>- The old General camping newsgroup, receives very
few posts now.
<news:uk.rec.caravanning>- Recreational Vehicles (and camping) in the UK
2.2 Email lists
The most active RV list is hosted By Trailer Life Inc. They see up to 40
posts a day, and average between 20 and 30. You can find the subscription
information on their home page <http://www.tl.com>. You can subscribe by
posting to rv-l-...@tl.com. There is also an index for Śgood stuffą at
<http://www.metrolink.net/~ejyoung/>.
3 WWW information and E-mail sources
3.1 RV and Camping Parts Dealers
3.1.1 RV Dealers
Yahooąs Business listing
<http://www.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/Companies/Automotive/Recreational
_Vehicles/>
<http://www.winnebagoind.com/>
Winnebago Industries
<http://www.surfsouth.com/~sycmrind>
Sycamore Industries custom RVs
<http://users.1st.net/yonak>
Yonak Used RVąs
<http://www.trailer.net/mts/prod/coach/coach1.htm>
Maryland Coach Sales
<http://www.rvbuyers.com/>
Poulsbo RV
<http://www.dealernet.com>
Holiday Rambler, Coachmen
<http://www.execpc.com/~mcorley/rvshowmc.html>
An ever changing motorhome trade show on the web
<http://advantage.allyn.com/>
Discount Marine
<http://www.channel1.com/users/silverrv>
Coachmen
<http://www.presair.com/revcon/>
Revcon Motor homes, based an a Ford F-350 4x4
<http://www.axiom.net/cstone>
Stoneąs Camper Sales
3.1.2 Parts and accesories
Lesharo and Phase parts
<http://www.mobilityrv.com>
MSR Stoves (Backpacking and Expedition Stoves)
<Http://www.msrcorp.com/msr>
BatCat battery charger
<http://www.galvanix.com/>
RV Safety Equipment
<http://www.imall.com/imall/Specialty_Shops/circle/circle.html>
Satellite DSS-TV
<http://www.satwarehouse.com>
Satellite Cell Phone
<http://www.azstarnet.com/public/commerce/satellite>
Used RV parts
<http://www.primenet.com/~azrvinc>
J.C. Whitney Co
<http://shopping2000.com/shopping2000/jc_whitney/jc_whitney.html>
Rheem Airconditioners
<http://www.rheem.com/rheem>
Champion Trailer Parts
<http://www.championtrailers.com>
3.1.3 Other
Camping Guide
<http://www.bookworld.com/camping.htm>
<http://www.outwestnewspaper.com>
Outwest, a quarterly camping publication
<http://www.imaginet.fr/~joueur>
Renting and Camping in Europe
<http:/www.usa.net/resortx>
RV Resort Exchange
< http://www.delorme.com>
Delorme Maps (CD-ROM)
<http://www.presair.com/camping/>
Camping Information for Presidential Tours
<http://www.rvshop.com>
RV Shop
<http://motorhome.com>
Motorhome
<http://www.rvhome.com/>
Free classified RV related ads area, links to dealers and other web sites
of interest to RVers.
3.2 RV Loans
<http://www.financenter.com/resources/autoloan/index.html>
3.3 RV rentals
<http://www.elmonte.com>
Elmonte Motor Home rentals
<10023...@compuserve.com>
RV Rentals in Asia
<http://www.interlog.com/~passport>
One way rentals
<mailto:oas...@aol.com>
Rentals (and Sales)
<http://motorhome.com/> (Coming soon!)
<http://canadiana.com/cwrv/> (for now!)
<mailto:rvre...@canadiana.com>
Canada West R.V.
< http://www.rvrent.com>
RV Rent, Canadian RV rental
3.4 General Camping Supllies
Camping World (One of the Largest Suppliers of RV and Camping
equipment)
<http://www.campingworld.com/>
Recreational Equipment Inc (A Camping, Hiking and Outdoors related Co-
Op)
<http://www.rei.com>
Nemark Camping EquipmentGeneral camping supplies
<http://www.texas.net/nesmark>
Campmor (a camping supply company based in New Jersey, offers mail
order)
<http://www.campmor.com>
LL Bean Co (a camping supply company)
<http://www.llbean.com>
Outdoor Source
<http://www.tyrell.net/~outdoors/
Cybershop also has outdoor items
<http://cybershop.com>
Jesse Brown, providers of outdoor gear
<http://www.jessebrown.com>
Truck Tent, Tents for Pick-up Trucks
<http://www.vaxxine.com/trucktent>
Outdoor Experience (general camping equipment)
<http://www.theoutdoor.com>
3.5 What RV Parks are on the Net?
KOA is on line, with a listing of all their parks
<http://www.koakampgrounds.com>
Yogi Bearąs Jelleystone Park Restort
<http://members.aol.com/yogiturney>
RV park near Mt Shasta Ca.
<mailto:rod...@snowcrest.net>
SOUTH PRONG CREEK Campground
<http://www.mauiweb.com/comp/rv-park/>
General listing of private campgrounds
<http://www.campgrounds.com/>
<http://www.campgrounds.net/>
Recreational Properties for sale
<http://www.kcinternet.com/RPRE/>
Discount on Campgrounds
<http:www.cooldeals.com/passport>
Bayleysą Resort, Scarborough Maine
<http://www.bayleys-camping.com/>
Holiday Publication Campground Directory
<http://www.holipub.com/camping/director.htm>
Lazy H Campground
<http://www.desertgold.com/lazyh/lazyh.html>
3.6 RV Manufacturers
Alaskan Campers
<http://www.alaskancampers.com>
Beaver Motor Coaches
http://www.rvamerica.com/smc>
Born Free Motorcoach
http://www.dodge-bornfree.com>
Casita Enterprises
cas...@airmail.net
Coach House Inc
coach...@netsrq.com
Collins Manufacturing
http://www.collinsmfg.com/
Foretravel
http://www.foretravel.com/
Holiday Rambler
http://www.holidayrambler.com/
Monaco Coach
http://www.monoaco-online.com/
Peterson Industries Inc
http://petersonind.com/
Pleasure-Way Industries
pleas...@mail.quadrant.com
Safari Motor Coaches
http://www.rvamerica.com/smc
Shadow Cruiser
73622...@compuserve.com
http://www.shadowcruiser.com/
Sunline Coach
http://www.sunlinerv.com/
Sun-Lite
http://www.skyenet.net/sunlite/
Western RV
in...@wrv.com
Winnebago Industries
7226...@compuserve.com
4.0 Other RV and camping related items (along with selected personal
pages).
4.1 Clubs, Rallys, Groups, etc
A Good Sam office can be found at:
Dee Reed <mailto:73324...@compuserve.com>
Also the Good Sam (TL Enterprises) Home page is
<http://www.tl.com/>
The Escapeeąs RV Club
<http://www.channel1.com/users/escapees>
RV Rallys in the Southern USA
<http://www.lacajun.com/creativeworld.html/>
Loners of America
<http://www.napanet.net/~mbost/>
RV Consumer Group
<mailto:rvg...@olympus.net>
4.2 Government Resources
<http://www.fs.fed.us/>
The US Forest Service Home page
4.3 Books and Media
Outdoor Books source
<http://www.bookserve.com/>
Powels Books
<http://www.powells.com>
Bus Conversions Magzine
<http://www.busconversions.com>
4.4 Other Misc
Yahooąs RV listing
<http://www.yahoo.com/Recreation/Travel/Recreational_Vehicles__RV_/>
RV Safety
<http://www.rvsafety.com>
Tire Safety Institute
<http://tisc.org/index.html>
RV Tire Safety info from the Tire Safety Institute
<http://tisc.org/RVintro.html>
the Motorcycle camping homepage
<http://www.vive.com/connect/ibmc/>
RV Photos and Links
<http://www.rv-online.com>
A page with a North West (American) flare
< http://www.pacificrim.net/~tgonser/RV.html>
A RV Calendar can be found at
<http://www.ilinks.net/~dms/rvcalend.htm>
A Search Page for RVąs can be found at
<http://www.mindspring.com/~ke4ejq/form.htm>
<http://www.mindspring.com/~ke4ejq/leesrv.htm>
A check list can also be found at
<http://www.billboard.com/Mike_Smith/Crisis_Kits/Camping_list>
VW Westfalia Campers home page
<http://members.aol.com/johnbmtl/westfalia.html>
4.5 Other Commercial
RV Professional Service advies
<http://www.netcom.com/~va_rv/>
RV Coach Online
<http://www.rv-coach.com/>
The Sewer Solution (RVąs)
<http://www.brigadoon.com/~meplan9/ss.htm>
Satellite TV Equipement
<http://www.ilinks.net/~dms>
S.R.M. Enterprises Specializing in Dish Network satellite systems for the
RVer.
<http://www.rvhome.com/satdish/dishnet.htm>
Happy Camper (SW, USA)
<http://www.hcampers.com>
California RV
<http://www.liberty.com/home/larv/larv.htm>
Camping USA
<http://www.camping-usa.com>
RV Amercia, misc RV information
<http://www.rvamerica.com/>
RV Shop
<http://www.RVSHOP.COM/>
RV Camping
<http://www.rvcamping.com/>
RV Central
<http://rvcentral.com/home.htm>
RV Link
<http://rvlink.com/>
RV USA, a resource for the RV Industry
<http://www.rvusa.com/>
Campnet America
<http://www.kiz.com/>
RV and travel info
<http://www.rvhiway.com/>
Campground Online
<http://www.channel1.com/users/brosius>
RV Net
<http://qb.island.net/~oceansd/>
RVąs Freighted to Alaska
<http://www.seanet.com/~sbenbow/>
5 Net Access on the Road
---------------------------
On Road with the INTERNET
...or... I donąt want to lose my net connection while Iąm on the road, what
can I do?
From: pri...@aol.com (Prinjrw)
Janet
The Road Princess
Hi there,
Got so many e-mails from the newsgroup on my methods of hooking up
while on the road as full-timers that I thought I'd just post it to the
newsgroup. Miss you all and hope to be able to visit the newsgroup again
soon. You guys post too much stuff for me to download when I grab my
e-mail. We love the wander-life and would not go back to being chained to
a house for anything.
Here's the info.
Hooking up your modem:
These directions are for laptop owners only. If you insist in
traveling with only a desk-top, I can't help you. Get a laptop, even a
used one with a 14.4 modem to use for connecting. The desk-top is not a
great traveler, takes up a lot of room and is prone to problems from
campground electricity. The places I am listing will work if your
provider has an 800#. If they don't, change providers. I use AOL and it
costs me 10 cents a minute for the 800#.
Here's a list of places where you can use your laptop and modem:
1)Truck stops with table phones. Order breakfast (anytime of day) and
plug in. The phones are on jacks and can be disconnected until you are
done. They only work on 800#s. The food is good, too.
2)Staples, Office Max, Office Depot. They have fax service and/or
computers where you can design your own business cards that are hooked
to modems. Ask the manager for permission to hook up your modem for
two minutes. Just go for the e-mail, download it and read it off-line.
Send the answers off another time.
3)Hotels. The ones that cater to traveling business folk have lobby pay
phones that are desk models and will have modem access ports. They may
have jacks that come out so you can plug in and use the 800#. Can sit
here in a nice chair and surf the net or crawl the web. Get a drink from
the bar or coffee from the coffee shop and make yourself comfortable.
4)Kinko's, Sir Speedy and other copying centers often have phone jacks for
use with 800#s
5)Mail Boxes stores, and other places that will send faxes for you have
dedicated lines to which the fax machines are connected. They are only
used for outgoing messages. Give them the cost of one page of fax and
they'll let you hookup.
6)Desk-style pay phones. Found one of these in a laundromat. It had a
jack plug. I took it out and plugged in the modem. I held the handset of
the dead phone to my ear so that passersby would think I was on the phone
(which I was).
7)Campground offices. You have to ask the manager and you have to be
really, really nice. Bringing them some cake or chips doesn't hurt
either. Sometimes I take out my multi connector and hook their phone to
it, too. Many of them will believe that by using the multi their phone is
still connected.
8)Junction boxes on pay phones. Some of these have test jacks and you can
plug into to them. I don't do this, but a friend showed me how. Since I am
not sure it's really legal, I'm not going to go into any further detail. My
friend says that if you use an 800# it's not illegal, but I'd rather play it
safe.
9)Computer service stores. Go in and tell them you think your modem is
broken. Get them to hook you up, send out and retrieve your e-mail and
when it works, say: "I guess I have a problem in my phone line. I'll call
the phone company". Don't forget to thank them for their help anyway.
Ralph writes:
Choosing a provider:
The first thing to remember is that it's not going to be as cheap or
good as your home to your local connection. As far as I'm concerned there
is not `right' answer, and only maybe `wrong' answers.
You can continue to get service from your current provider. Most of
the large national providers have local numbers in most urban areas,
however only a few rural areas are covered. This certainly mean a long
distance call to your `national' provider when you are staying at Snow
Bank Alaska.
You could also call your current provider long distance via a number
of plans. All three of the `biggies' offer long distance discount plans, one
where all calls to a particular town (say where you live and your service
provider is) could be a good idea.
Another good idea is the personal 1-800 numbers. These can be set up
to call any number you chose, like your providers. You certainly want one
where a PIN or password is required.
You could sign up with a provider that offers 1-800 access. Or you
could go with one of the providers that offers `free' access. These
providers get their money via profit sharing with the long distance
provider and some restrict which provider can be used.
Finding a Phone Jack at the RV park
Good luck.
This is `real new' stuff here as far as most parks are concerned. I've
yet to see a phone at any RV park that was set up to allow a modem to be
added or removed easily. Many parks don't have phone lines to each site.
Perhaps some parks could add phones for the travelers, with all but 1-800
type long distance locked out.
Another option is the cradle modem. One of these would allow you to
use any phone, even a pay phone.
In closing Trailer Lifeąs home page has a listing, that they are working
hard at keeping up to date, of all known parks that are on-line friendly.
<http://www.tl.com/advice/roads_phones.html>