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From: CERF@A.ISI.EDU
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re:  RCTE
Message-ID: <[A.ISI.EDU]30-Sep-87.18:26:05.CERF>
Date: Wed, 30-Sep-87 18:26:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: <[A.ISI.EDU]30-Sep-87.18:26:05.CERF>
Posted: Wed Sep 30 18:26:00 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 5-Oct-87 00:51:04 EDT
References: <turkewit@CCV.BBN.COM>
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The ARPA Internet
Lines: 24

The MCI Mail system, which runs on an X.25 version of the BBN C.30 packet
net, is a line-at-a-time system which forwards on CR and does intra-line
editing at the PAD (TAC). Most users preferred that mode because
of the immediate echoing response. Remote echo mode was simply not
acceptable. Of course, many of the long haul lines were 9.6 rather
than 50 kb/s and this contributed to increased "stickiness" of the
echoing. On the whole, I felt strongly for that particular application
the line at a time mode was best - presuming, of course, that most
of the real text editing was done off-line with a PC and that the
interaction was mostly for preparation of addressees.

Eventually, PC packages like Lotus Express and Desktop Express for
the IBM PC and Apple Macintosh were produced which largely decoupled
the users from any direct interaction exposing the network. Most users
of these packages prefer not to go back to the direct mode at all,
I believe.

The point of all this is to argue that localizing much of the
interaction which would otherwise require char-by-char network
support seems preferable and in keeping with trends towards more
powerful, local workstations using background processes to handle
network activities.

Vint