Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!samsung!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!caen!ox.com!umich!sharkey!bnlux1.bnl.gov!bstewart
From: bstewart@bnlux1.bnl.gov (Bruce Stewart)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.sgi
Subject: Internet usage
Message-ID: <1991May16.172610.27281@bnlux1.bnl.gov>
Date: 16 May 91 17:26:10 GMT
References: <2B9CF1DBA0009B66@MSUS1.MSUS.EDU> <1991May15.200159.19891@cs.dal.ca>
Distribution: na
Organization: Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY 11973
Lines: 18

In article <1991May15.200159.19891@cs.dal.ca> silvert%biome@cs.dal.ca writes:
>
>Your final comment about using email is valid, but apparently that
>violates the noncommercial constraints.  Pity.
>-- 

Many forward-thinking vendors, including SGI, will use email 
communication with their customers on a selective basis. It
would probably not be a good idea to attempt to codify when
this is acceptable practice, because codification would probably
encourage a restrictive view. Certainly the submission by email of
moderate-sized test cases for bug reports is one example of
accepted practice.

Certain vendors, including the world's largest, seem to virtually
exclude use of the Internet from their operations. I find this
approach very surprising. IMHO this approach is more a matter
of corporate culture than rational decision.