<s>
Simtel	B-Application
(	O
sometimes	O
called	O
Simtelnet	O
,	O
originally	O
SIMTEL20	B-Application
)	O
was	O
an	O
important	O
long-running	O
archive	O
of	O
freeware	B-License
and	O
shareware	B-License
for	O
various	O
operating	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Simtel	B-Application
archive	O
had	O
significant	O
ties	O
to	O
the	O
history	O
of	O
several	O
operating	O
systems	O
:	O
it	O
was	O
in	O
turn	O
a	O
major	O
repository	O
for	O
CP/M	B-Application
,	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
,	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
and	O
FreeBSD	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
archive	O
was	O
hosted	O
initially	O
on	O
the	O
MIT-MC	O
PDP-10	B-Device
running	O
the	O
Incompatible	B-Application
Timesharing	I-Application
System	I-Application
,	O
then	O
TOPS-20	B-Operating_System
,	O
then	O
FreeBSD	B-Operating_System
servers	O
,	O
with	O
archive	O
distributor	O
Walnut	O
Creek	O
CDROM	O
helping	O
fund	O
FreeBSD	B-Operating_System
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Simtel	B-Application
originated	O
as	O
SIMTEL20	B-Application
,	O
a	O
software	O
archive	O
started	O
by	O
Keith	O
Petersen	O
in	O
1979	O
while	O
living	O
in	O
Royal	O
Oak	O
,	O
Michigan	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
archive	O
consisted	O
of	O
CP/M	B-Application
software	O
for	O
early	O
8080-based	O
microcomputers	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
was	O
hosted	O
on	O
a	O
PDP-10	B-Device
at	O
MIT	O
that	O
also	O
ran	O
a	O
CP/M	B-Application
mailing	O
list	O
to	O
which	O
Petersen	O
subscribed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
access	O
to	O
the	O
particular	O
MIT	O
computer	O
was	O
removed	O
in	O
1983	O
,	O
fellow	O
CP/M	B-Application
enthusiast	O
Frank	O
Wancho	O
,	O
then	O
an	O
employee	O
at	O
the	O
White	O
Sands	O
Missile	O
Range	O
,	O
arranged	O
for	O
the	O
archive	O
to	O
be	O
hosted	O
on	O
a	O
DECSYSTEM-20	B-Device
computer	O
with	O
ARPANET	O
access	O
,	O
accessible	O
via	O
FTP	B-Protocol
at	O
simtel20.arpa	O
,	O
later	O
known	O
as	O
wsmr-simtel20.army.mil	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
this	O
time	O
,	O
Simtel	B-Application
began	O
archiving	O
MS-DOS	B-Application
software	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
its	O
archive	O
of	O
CP/M	B-Application
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
time	O
,	O
the	O
SIMTEL20	B-Application
archive	O
added	O
software	O
for	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
,	O
user	O
groups	O
and	O
various	O
programming	O
languages	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
Ada	B-Language
Software	O
Repository	O
,	O
the	O
CP/M	B-Application
User	O
's	O
Group	O
,	O
PC/Blue	O
,	O
SIG/M	O
( icros	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
Unix/C	O
collections	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1991	O
,	O
Walnut	O
Creek	O
CDROM	O
was	O
founded	O
by	O
Robert	O
A	O
.	O
Bruce	O
,	O
which	O
helped	O
distribute	O
the	O
Simtel	B-Application
archive	O
on	O
CD-ROM	O
discs	O
for	O
those	O
not	O
wishing	O
,	O
or	O
unable	O
,	O
to	O
access	O
the	O
archive	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1993	O
,	O
the	O
SIMTEL20	B-Application
archive	O
at	O
White	O
Sands	O
Missile	O
Range	O
was	O
shut	O
down	O
due	O
to	O
budget	O
constraints	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
From	O
1993	O
on	O
,	O
the	O
Walnut	O
Creek	O
CDROM	O
FTP	B-Protocol
server	O
and	O
(	O
later	O
on	O
)	O
Web	O
site	O
became	O
the	O
focal	O
point	O
for	O
online	O
Simtel	B-Application
access	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
much	O
of	O
its	O
life	O
the	O
Web	O
site	O
and	O
primary	O
mirrors	O
were	O
located	O
at	O
www.cdrom.com	O
,	O
www.simtel.net	O
,	O
and	O
oak.oakland.edu	O
at	O
Oakland	O
University	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
July	O
1998	O
,	O
the	O
Simtel	B-Application
FTP	B-Protocol
server	O
set	O
a	O
record	O
for	O
overall	O
traffic	O
with	O
a	O
total	O
transfer	O
amount	O
of	O
417	O
GB	O
of	O
data	O
in	O
one	O
day	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
1999	O
,	O
the	O
Simtel	B-Application
FTP	B-Protocol
server	O
surpassed	O
its	O
own	O
record	O
by	O
transferring	O
,	O
in	O
one	O
day	O
,	O
a	O
total	O
of	O
873	O
GB	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
same	O
year	O
it	O
served	O
10,000	O
clients	O
at	O
a	O
time	O
,	O
showing	O
that	O
the	O
C10k	B-Protocol
problem	I-Protocol
was	O
tractable	O
on	O
contemporary	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Due	O
to	O
a	O
mirror	O
licensing	O
dispute	O
situation	O
with	O
Coast	O
to	O
Coast	O
Telecommunications	O
in	O
1995	O
(	O
now	O
Allegiance	O
Telecom	O
,	O
part	O
of	O
XO	B-Application
Communications	I-Application
)	O
,	O
archive	O
maintainer	O
Keith	O
Petersen	O
left	O
his	O
employment	O
with	O
CCT	O
and	O
moved	O
on	O
to	O
Walnut	O
Creek	O
CDROM	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
1999	O
,	O
Digital	O
River	O
purchased	O
Simtel	B-Application
from	O
Walnut	O
Creek	O
CDROM	O
for	O
US	O
$1.0	O
million	O
and	O
143,885	O
shares	O
of	O
common	O
stock	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mr.	O
Petersen	O
contracted	O
with	O
Digital	O
River	O
,	O
along	O
with	O
small	O
business	O
owner	O
and	O
son	O
Kurt	O
Petersen	O
of	O
Petersen	O
Business	O
Management	O
,	O
to	O
manage	O
the	O
Simtel	B-Application
collections	O
and	O
continued	O
to	O
do	O
so	O
until	O
January	O
15	O
,	O
2001	O
.	O
</s>
