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From: barmar@think.com (Barry Margolin)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: What is Internet?
Message-ID: <1990Dec31.001115.6389@Think.COM>
Date: 31 Dec 90 00:11:15 GMT
References: <7923@hub.ucsb.edu>
Sender: news@Think.COM
Organization: Thinking Machines Corporation, Cambridge MA, USA
Lines: 31

In article <7923@hub.ucsb.edu> jim@ferkel.ucsb.edu (Jim Lick) writes:
>I'd like to add a few comments on the differences between Usenet, UUCP, and
>Internet as discussed recently.
...
>The fact is, that despite what many people still think, the Internet is no
>longer one net with one all-encompassing policy regarding use.

Everything you say is correct -- the Internet is a conglomeration of many
separate networks, with different acceptable use policies.  However, in a
TCP/IP internet it's often difficult for users to predict just which nets
their packets will travel over.  In addition, there are application-level
gateways between the Internet and other networks (e.g. the Internet is used
to connect many pieces of Usenet).

Unless a user knows a priori that he will be communicating over a
particular network, the only safe thing is to assume that one of the more
restrictive networks.  So, if you're on PSInet and you know that another
host is also on PSInet, you two can use the net for commercial traffic; but
if you're connecting to some host you know little about, you should assume
it is on one of the NSF-sponsored nets and obey their restrictions.  Since
the NSFnet portion of the Internet is effectively part of the Usenet
backbone, and there is no one screening postings as they pass through these
gateways, most Usenet newsgroups may not be used for commercial purposes (I
think there are some netnews hierarchies that arrange not to get forwarded
over the NSFnet, so that they are not subject to its restrictions).

--
Barry Margolin, Thinking Machines Corp.

barmar@think.com
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