Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!ames!sgi!zok!wattres!steve
From: steve@wattres.UUCP (Steve Watt)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re: DDN NETWORK INFORMATION CENTER (NIC)
Message-ID: <455@wattres.UUCP>
Date: 7 Apr 90 20:09:03 GMT
References: <9004040841.AA12124@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> <3814@infmx.UUCP>
Reply-To: steve@wattres.UUCP (Steve Watt)
Organization: Steven Watt, Consultant
Lines: 53

In article <3814@infmx.UUCP> briand@infmx.UUCP (brian donat) writes:
>		NIC services are for registered DDN users and if
>	    you should not fall into this category, you have no
>	    access to the services and hence, no access to RFCs. 
>
>	    So, whatever text or other references pointed you in
>	    your persuit of net.knowledge to RFCs, the road ends
>	    here if you're not a DDN user.   (Apparently)
>
>I only have one question.   Are RFCs classified? 

  If the RFCs were classified, they would be of no use to ANYBODY in the
real world.

  Also, the mail address (service@nic.ddn.mil) works for anybody...  I've
used it.

  It does mention several times that the ARPANet and MILNet are for companies
(or other organizations) that have some relationship with the US government, or
are educational institutions (I guess they have _some_ relationship with the
government, though... -- Something about educational funding... :)

  On a more general note, having re-read the article several times, I think
the above conclusions came from a paragraph that read something like:

| Military personnel or DoD contractors with proper authorization may obtain
| protocol-related documents such as circulars, directives, or memoranda from
| the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC).
 [ DTIC's address removed ]

I think you missed the next line completely:

| Contractors and researchers without access to DTIC can obtain these
| documents from the NIC.

  Since the NIC also hands out internet numbers, it would not be very useful
for the general net.population if they only gave them out to ARPANet sites.
Handling mail forwarding for sites not connected (like all of the ones I use/
talk to) would not work well.

  Also:  Why do you think there's a section on "Publications Available from
the DDN Network Information Center (NIC)" if they weren't publicly available?
I STRONGLY recommend the DDN Protocol Handbook for anybody who's implementing
TCP on anything, since it is *THE* definitive spec.  (It's only $190.00, not
bad when you consider that it is 4 volumes, and well over 2000 pages.)

  Sorry if this sounded like a flame, but I've had several dealings with the
NIC, and they have been very helpful (if not particularly quick).

-- 
Steve Watt
...!claris!wattres!steve		wattres!steve@claris.com also works
If you torture your data long enough, it'll eventually confess.