[297] in Resnet-Forum
Re: ResNet AUP & campus net AUP -- are they the same?
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Albert Lunde)
Fri Jun 10 19:45:24 1994
Date: Fri, 10 Jun 1994 18:28:33 -0600
To: resnet-forum@MIT.EDU
From: Albert-Lunde@nwu.edu (Albert Lunde)
someone wrote:
>Whether you do or don't have such AUPs articulated, can you think of any
>use of a campus network that would be acceptable in residence halls but
>unacceptable elsewhere, or vice versa? How about use of a video network in
>or outside a residence hall? Phone service?
There may be some differences in policy based on the fact that residential
users are supplying their own CPUs, but still using network bandwidth.
For example, use of systems for accessing IRC or MUDS is often discouraged
or forbidden on account of CPU load. If people run software on their own
PCs, there may still be a significant network bandwidth use, but the CPU
issue goes away.
Some sites may regulate the contents of what is put up on ftp, gopher, ftp,
or web servers owned by the organization. When the system is owned by a
student and housed in the dorm, the arguments in favor of regulating any
content not actually illegal are are good deal weaker.
It's unrealistic to hold the position that everything coming from somewhere
in our domain name "officially" represents our university. (Though we are
still responsible for controlling net abuse.)
Sexual material is the most often cited "hot button", but is not the only
controversial thing _someone_ might wish to serve up on the net. (Look at
the contents of USENET for examples ;)
At the same time,the fate of any site that offers visual adult erotica
(like gifs) (typically driven off the net by overload), illustrates that
there are some sorts of content that, while legal, may still constitute
problems with respect to network usage.
A policy should distingush between controlling things on grounds like this
and purely on the basis of content (which you may prefer to stay out
of...).
Trying to deal with these issues in a way that is legal, enforceable, and
even-handed is not easy.
---
Albert Lunde Albert-Lunde@nwu.edu
