Path: utzoo!utgpu!watserv1!watmath!uunet!samsung!think.com!hsdndev!husc6!Frodo.MGH.Harvard.EDU!Cherry
From: Cherry@Frodo.MGH.Harvard.EDU (J. Michael Cherry)
Newsgroups: bionet.molbio.genbank
Subject: RE:A question for FTP users
Message-ID: <5404@husc6.harvard.edu>
Date: 21 Jan 91 15:08:44 GMT
References: <9101191404.AA18024@genbank.bio.net>
Sender: news@husc6.harvard.edu
Organization: Molecular Biology, Mass. General Hospital
Lines: 33

In article <9101191404.AA18024@genbank.bio.net> 
BROE@AARDVARK.UCS.UOKNOR.EDU (Bruce Roe) writes:
> David K. recently asked us to comment on the idea of keeping both
> the current GenBank release AND the previous GenBank release in the
> FTP directory as standard policy.

I see no reason for GenBank.Bio.Net to keep the old release files online. 
Each release exists on GenBank.Bio.Net for about three months before its 
deleted and replaced with the next release. That seems like plenty of time 
for anyone to retrieve the files if GenBank is important to their site. If 
someone really needs an easy archive of old versions they should subscribe 
to the CD-ROM distributions.

> Is there a site we can ftp the databases in GCG format out there?  If 
> not, why not?

I know of no sites that make the GCG format of the database open to the 
public. GCG's format once was just NBRF's format but they have been moving 
away from that in recent years. I don't think GenBank.Bio.Net should 
provide anything but the GenBank format files. I would be willing to 
provide the GCG formatted database to the net but I really don't want to 
be the only site in the world providing access. If other sites around the 
world, or at least the US, are interested in being regional ftp access 
sites for the GCG formatted database please let me know. As a closing note 
the reformating from GenBank to GCG is quite simple, involving two 
commands to rebuilt the entire database. Transferring the database via the 
Internet can take longer in real time than the GCG reformatting process.

Mike Cherry
cherry@frodo.mgh.harvard.edu
Department of Molecular Biology
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston
617-726-5955