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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxl!cbosgd!ksh
From: ksh@cbosgd.UUCP (Karen Summers-Horton)
Newsgroups: net.mail
Subject: progress report for UUCP project
Message-ID: <1397@cbosgd.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 31-May-84 23:06:50 EDT
Article-I.D.: cbosgd.1397
Posted: Thu May 31 23:06:50 1984
Date-Received: Sat, 2-Jun-84 12:09:15 EDT
Distribution: net
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Columbus
Lines: 102

The following is a progress report to the UUCP community on the status
of the UUCP Project funded by the Usenix Association.  So we may keep
you informed of the progress of the project, I will be posting monthly
progress reports to Usenet.

Summary of Goals of the Project:

The UUCP project has grown tired of trying to get mail from one place
to another by the seat of its pants, and has decided to do something
about it.  We have created three coordinated efforts.  The map group
is collecting data to form a UUCP map.  Once collected, it will keep
the map up to date enough to be used by mail routing software.  The
mail group will write a set of programs to run under Unix to take
care of mail routing.  The news group, which is not working under
any timetable or deadlines, will continue the maintenence of the
netnews software.

The results of these efforts will be made available to the UUCP
community for free.  It is hoped that after the software and map
are completed and distributed, a large part of the UUCP community
will make use of it, and that standard distributions of UNIX will
include it or software compatible with it.  We have chosen the ARPA
domain structure as a mailing address standard, since this appears
to be an emerging de-facto standard.  Use of domains will ensure
a flexible system for future expansion, and will ensure that we
are compatible with neighboring electronic mail communities that
use the same standards, such as the ARPA Internet, CSNET, and Digital's
ENET.

Mapping progress:

'Phase One' of the data collection is complete.  That is, we have
completed the first round of data collection, and are ready to
begin the maintenance phase.  We also plan to begin more serious
attempts at collecting data on systems that have not yet responded.
The data collection effort was conducted mainly by Scott Bradner and
Rob Kolstad, with the assistance of others at Harvard.  This help
is greatly appreciated.

At this point we have divided the UUCP world into nine regions for
continued data collection and map maintenance.  The individuals who
have agreed to help in this tremendous effort are:

	Rick Adams (seismo!rick)
	Greg Fowler (hplabs!fowler)
	Rick Kiessig (idi!kiessig)
	Doug McCallum (nbires!mccallum)
	Lauren Weinstein (vortex!lauren)
	Gary Murakami (ihnp4!gjm)
	Teus Hagen (mcvax!teus)
	Bill Welch (jett!bill)

Their specific areas of responsibility will be posted in the near
future, so you will know who is your regional coordinator for the
project.

Software progress:

The software group is being coordinated by Berry Kercheval
(zinfandel!berry).

The user interface will present ARPA domains to the user in
the user@domain syntax.  All headers will be in this syntax
and the user will normally type addresses in this format.
For upward compatibility, we will also accept the host!user
syntax.

At the transport level, we have settled on a modified domain
syntax: domain!user.  This will enable us to use the existing
UUCP network routing mechanism without worrying about what an
existing host will do with an address like a!b@c.d.  Instead,
we will generate a!c.d!b which is safe.

The current set of functions to be provided include the "simplemail"
program, which acts like sendmail but is much simpler and only
handles the ordinary cases; the rmail program to handle incoming
UUCP mail, a front end for /bin/mail to determine if it is invoked
as a user interface or a mailer and to call either the real /bin/mail
or simplemail; back ends to do mail delivery (/bin/mail, uux),
and minor modifications to the popular user interfaces (Mail and MH)
to handle domains properly, for example in replies.

We currently have a prototype program that will accept mail
based on the domain syntax and pass it up and down the domain
tree and deliver it locally.  This was written by Paul Bame.
We intend to extend this program to handle additional cases,
such as the old ! syntax and the new domain!user transport syntax.

Other Issues:

The Usenix Conference in Salt Lake City will be the forum for many
detailed progress reports on the project, and several announcements
of new portions of the project.  I will summarize these reports and
announcements to the net after the conference.  The UUCP Mapping Project
will have its own session at the conference, Friday, June 15, 
9-10:30 a.m. (track B).

As always, I welcome all comments and suggestions concerning this
project.  Mail them to cbosgd!ksh.  Thank you.

	Karen Summers-Horton
	cbosgd!ksh