Fully cross-platform · Customizable Skins · Pure retro BBS feel
About X-NEWS
X-NEWS is a cross-platform, door program for BBSes and terminal fans, inspired by the X-Bit BBS feed and classic 90s readers. It fetches and displays an RSS feed of your choice, styled in customizable ANSI "skins" with real BBS paging, color themes, and smart word wrapping.
- Packed with MS-DOS (GO32v2), Linux, Windows (32/64), Raspberry Pi ARM, and Amiga builds
- Easy integration for any modern or retro BBS (Synchronet, Mystic, GameSrv, WWIV, etc.)
- Supports any valid RSS XML file-fetch online or load local feeds (MS-DOS, Amiga)
- Works out of the box with ANSI skins, color settings, and all config as plain text
- Includes advanced "mojibake" and HTML entity cleaning, so your feed always displays crisp ASCII
Written by Alexander Corris, 2025. Based on a concept and collaboration with Rob McGee (X-Bit BBS) and StingRay's (A-Net Online) character wizardry — thanks to all!
Key Features
- Cross-platform: MS-DOS, Linux, Pi, Windows - all builds included (MS-DOS/Amiga Separate)
- ANSI skin backgrounds: random or fixed .ANS themes per session
- Customizable colors, wrap width, and display controls
- Navigation: [A]bout · [N]ext · [P]revious · [Q]uit · [Enter]-to-exit (configurable)
- Handles HTML escapes, Unicode punctuation, and even weird encoding glitches
- MS-DOS version loads RSS from rss.xml - use a batch or scheduled script to download new feeds
- Works with any BBS that supports DOOR32, dropfiles, or native executables
Want to add a new skin? Just drop an ANSI .ANS in the /skins folder. Need a different feed? Edit xnews.cfg or for MS-DOS replace your RSS.XML file!
Downloads
- Download X-NEWS for Amiga
- Download X-NEWS for MS-DOS (GO32v2)
- Download X-NEWS for Windows, Linux, Pi
(cross-platform pack, 4MB)
Getting Started
- Extract to your BBS's doors directory (8.3 filenames for MS-DOS).
- Edit xnews.cfg with your RSS feed URL, skins, and colors.
- Copy your favorite ANSI art to /skins/.
- For MS-DOS: download or sync your RSS XML file to rss.xml with your own script.
For Synchronet, Mystic, GameSrv, or any BBS that supports DOOR32/DOOR.SYS, see SYSOP.DOC inside.
Credits & Links
- Concept and code: Alexander Corris (2025)
- Original feed & inspiration: Rob McGee, (X-Bit BBS)
- Special thanks: StingRay (A-Net Online) for the strange and Unicode char lookup