Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!mailrus!ames!elroy!mahendo!earle
From: earle@mahendo.Jpl.Nasa.Gov (Greg Earle)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Domain name, domain name, what shalt thou be, domain name?
Message-ID: <242@mahendo.Jpl.Nasa.Gov>
Date: 11 Apr 88 09:49:30 GMT
Reply-To: earle@mahendo.JPL.NASA.GOV (Greg Earle)
Followup-To: poster
Distribution: na
Organization: Gainfully Unemployed Ltd., Lakeview Terrace  CA
Lines: 41
Summary: SLIP links (point-to-point links in general) muddy the picture ...

[ This is probably not the best place for this.  I couldn't come up with
  a better one, though, other than `Namedroppers'.  Apologies in advance ... ]

I have an interesting possible scenario, and would like to solicit suggestions
regarding choosing a domain to reside under.  To wit: 

Currently, I access the known Universe and my beloved Internet connection via
an account on this machine [mahendo.JPL.NASA.GOV].  Let's say I am about to
begin work for the `Moon' company.  The Moon company has a registered domain,
Moon.COM.  There are several sub-domains under Moon.COM, for simplicity's
sake let's choose geographically based ones - West.Moon.COM, East.Moon.COM, &c.
I will be provided with a machine in order to perform my job duties.  Under
ordinary circumstances, I could expect to name this machine `gregsbox', and
nestle comfortably under the name `gregsbox.West.Moon.COM' with an MX record
handled by Moon.COM.  On the other hand, say the loss of my Internet connection
proves too great to handle (*sniff*).  I then cajole the good folks at JPL who
administer the JPL.NASA.GOV domain into letting me set up a SLIP link with
them.  Now, this becomes easy, since JPL.NASA.GOV is neatly subdivided into
Class B subnets.  Merely by choosing a machine on the backbone net without
an existing subnet farm, a TrailBlazer SLIP link between the my machine and
somebackbonebox.JPL.NASA.GOV gets me onto a new JPL-Net subnet.  Thus, just
by running `routed' I become known to the rest of the world (by proxy) because
of their current subnet set-up.  So, if I chose, I could also easily nestle
into `gregsbox.JPL.NASA.GOV' with some Internet address containing 128.149.s.h.

In other words, from a *connectivity* and *network* standpoint, such a 
circumstance would point to being a member of the JPL domain.  But from an
*organizational* standpoint (i.e., who I *work* for), it would point to
staying inside the Moon.COM domain.

Given this scenario, how does one choose which domain to reside in?  N.B.:
I realize that with some point-to-point links such as this, that there are
plenty that retain the organizational-oriented domain name.  But given that
the network address would be one that is under JPL's network domain (i.e.,
`128.149' is JPL-Net's and JPL-Net's alone), I don't know how this would
affect this decision.  Any help?!?
-- 
	Greg Earle		earle@mahendo.JPL.NASA.GOV
	Indep. Sun consultant	earle%mahendo@jpl-elroy.ARPA	[aka:]
	(Gainfully Unemployed)	earle%mahendo@elroy.JPL.NASA.GOV
	Lake View Terrace, CA	...!{cit-vax,ames}!elroy!jplgodo!mahendo!earle