Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!unmvax!ncar!tank!oddjob!matt
From: matt@oddjob.uchicago.edu (Matt Crawford)
Newsgroups: news.sysadmin
Subject: Re: Stuck with .UUCP forever?
Message-ID: <3382@tank.uchicago.edu>
Date: 22 May 89 20:02:34 GMT
References: <1728@fig.bbn.com> <3790007@eecs.nwu.edu> <320@xdos.UUCP>
Sender: news@tank.uchicago.edu
Reply-To: matt@oddjob.uchicago.edu (Matt Crawford)
Organization: Koyaanisqatsi
Lines: 50
In-reply-to: doug@xdos.UUCP (Doug Merritt)

In article <320@xdos.UUCP>, doug@xdos (Doug Merritt) writes:
) Ok. But I'm still missing one central point: why can't I simply register
) my machine as "xdos.com", and automatically have Internet forwarders
) know who I am?

Define "who I am".  Names are entered in the domain system database as
the keys to various types of resource records (RRs).  What kind of RR
should be entered for xdos.com?

The first thing that has to happen is that the keepers of the "com"
domain enter one or more NS (name server) RRs for xdos.com.  These
direct queries to whatever host keeps the rest of the information about
xdos.com (and *.xdos.com, if any such names exist).  Right away you need
the cooperation of SOMEBODY on the internet, because the root servers
who keep "com" do not want to keep all the data for all the subdomains
also.

OK, so you find somebody who will insert your data in their files and
the root servers name that site in the NS record.  Now what?  The NS
records show that xdos.com exists, but you want to receive mail.

A randomly selected site on the internet delivers mail this way: first
it looks for an MX (mail exchanger) RR for the given name.  If one
exists, it names the INTERNET site to or through which mail should be
forwarded.  If there is no MX it looks for an A (address) record for the
target.  "Address" means numeric internet address.  You don't have one.

Unless you find some machine that will accept mail for "NAME@xdos.com" and
send it by UUCP to "xdos!NAME", there is no way for an arbitrary sending
site to bridge the gap between the internet and UUCP.  Much of the
internet has no interest in keeping UUCP map files.  (For that matter, a
lot of the UUCP world has no interest in keeping them either.)

) Why is it necessary to make a personal arrangement with some such
) machine?

It isn't.  You can make a business arrangement instead.  For $35 plus
connect time charges, UUNET will take care of you.

) Well, if I could get a real domain *purely* by following a registration
) procedure, with no "would *someone* please do me a a big personal favor
) and forward mail" arrangements necessary, then it would seem that most .UUCP
) sites would be .COM sites very rapidly. What, if anything, is wrong with
) this picture?

Who's going to forward your mail into UUCP-land?  Why should they
bother?  Do you want someone to force them to do it for you?  What are
you doing for them in return?
________________________________________________________
Matt Crawford	     		matt@oddjob.uchicago.edu