Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version VT1.00C 11/1/84; site vortex.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!genrad!decvax!vortex!lauren From: lauren@vortex.UUCP (Lauren Weinstein) Newsgroups: net.news.stargate Subject: Re: Stargate Deployment: possibilities Message-ID: <539@vortex.UUCP> Date: Sat, 2-Feb-85 16:11:14 EST Article-I.D.: vortex.539 Posted: Sat Feb 2 16:11:14 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 6-Feb-85 05:17:03 EST References: <159@dmsd.UUCP> Organization: Vortex Technology, Los Angeles Lines: 60 Just a few quick points: 1) It is my personal feeling that part of the problem with the moderated groups that we have now is that everything depends on volunteer labor. I don't believe that a TOTALLY volunteer system can work indefinitely, since we assume that people who would make good moderators also have other things to do with their time. However, just because under some future scenario people might be reimbursed for the time they spend doesn't imply some horrific money-grabbing organization. Even non-profit organizations usually pay bills and salaries for their people! 2) At this point, the only organization that has interest in making money on the project is the satellite carrier. As they have clearly shown, however, they are not interested in making quick money in this area. Their willingness to make free time available and to negotiate special low rates for the future show clearly that they feel the project and the network to be worthwhile in and of themselves. It isn't clear to me how this makes them any more commercial than the long distance companies who currently absorb all the money relating to Usenet phone calls. It seems quite clear that under any operational system the amount of money the sat people would be making would be MASSIVELY less than the amount going to phone calls now. 3) Judging from John Bass's comments, I wonder if he's a licensed amateur radio operator. I am. The rules for content on ham radio are MUCH more restrictive than anything we might see as moderation guidelines on Stargate. These rules (involving obscenity, non-use for business purposes, third-party message traffic relaying, and numerous other areas) are decidedly more strict than even the more common "broadcast" rules. The rules even explicitly state that people operating third party relays are directly responsible for the content of all traffic passing through them, and go on to say that (officially at any rate) all traffic is to be monitored at all times for compliance, and cut off immediately if there is non-compliance. Under ham rules, this could officially mean cutoffs for the simple use of "dirty" words, regardless of context. A large proportion of current Usenet traffic would also probably be deemed to be "commercial" in nature, and be forbidden even on that level. In other words, to keep things legal, ham radio would probably represent the MOST restrictive scenario in terms of content and the necessity for extremely conservative screening. Since you can't get a "commercial" ham license, much responsibility would have to be shouldered by individual hams, who could be personally liable for large fines and other legal sanctions. The ham packet radio people are only now starting to realize the full extent of liabilities that they must deal with under the law. Anyone trying to send much Usenet type data would attract instantaneous attention and close scrutiny. It just doesn't look very practical. --Lauren-- P.S. As for getting materials to Stargate, network mail is only one possibility. Other scenaries include direct dialups (possibly with 800 numbers) to reduce any input latency to a minimum. --LW--