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From: jss@sjuvax.UUCP (J. Shapiro)
Newsgroups: net.news
Subject: STARGATE
Message-ID: <793@sjuvax.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 2-Feb-85 19:47:33 EST
Article-I.D.: sjuvax.793
Posted: Sat Feb  2 19:47:33 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 6-Feb-85 03:46:50 EST
References: <387@hercules.UUCP> <69@cithep.UucP>
Organization: Saint Josephs Univ. Phila., Pa.
Lines: 40

[Aren't you hungry...?]

	I have not been follwing the STARGATE discussion, but it sounds as
though STARGATE censorship is proposed as a cost cutting measure. Cost
cutting is a fact of life - ask any college student why he can't go out to
dinner on a random night.

	It also sounds as though the backbone sites have two problems:

		1) Remarkably high phone bills

		2) High disk usage.

	Disk usage can be reduced by lowering the amount of time a given
article stays around.  A site might accept news, forward it, and clear out
(perhaps selectively) those articles or newsgroups it doesn't want. I am
aware that this involves a substantial investment in new netnews
software, but with due respect to Lauren, this has been needed for a long
time, and it seems that the current costs would make hiring someone on a
contractual basis to do it well worthwhile.  With the number of sites out
there using netnews, charging some small fee (say $50) would provide ample
return on the investment.

	The solution has drawbacks, some of them serious, but might be
considered.

	On the limitations of telephone bills, two things come to mind: First,
AT&T rates will drop substantially about a year and a half from now as a by
product of deregulation.  Let's all remember that if we hold out until then
we get some breathing space. It sounds as though the real problem is
telephone costs, and STARGATE bandwidth (I would think) should be high
enough that the censorship is not necessary but for the issue of legal
responsibility.  The phone company has dealt with this for a long time.  As
they have a vested interest in usenet, perhaps they could tell us more
about the legal constraints on stargate.

	Another approach might be to try to get the courts to clear this issue
up...

Jon Shapiro