[313] in Resnet-Forum
ResNet '94 -- Day 2
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Mike!)
Tue Jul 12 10:52:15 1994
Date: Tue, 12 Jul 1994 07:27:03 -0700
To: resnet-forum@MIT.EDU
From: Mike.W.Miller.40@nd.edu (Mike!)
The second full day of ResNet began with a keynote address by Eric
Benhamou, who is president and CEO of 3Com Corporation as well as a
Stanford alumnus and visible public figure in the Bay Area/Silicon Valley
region. Benhamou described his view of current optimal network topology
and what he believes the near future directions of campus networking will
bring (essentially, ATM everywhere but on the desktop). He predicted that
will it will take over a decade to seriously begin the migration to ATM
backbones and distribution spurs, but that there will not likely be another
technology to come along an surplant ATM's place as The Next Big Thing.
Two rounds of sessions filled the rest of the morning and the early
afternoon, then we were treated to a vendor faire of displays from at least
sixteen vendors of primarily networking products. The vendors seemed
genuinely pleased to talk with us and, in a nice change from some vendor
exhibitions, all seemed to pretty much know what they were talking about.
Apparently the feeling was mutual, as I happened to overhear one vendor on
the phone with his office saying "The people here really seem to be on the
ball with the technology and are asking us the right questions.... I'm
enjoying talking with them all."
Good cheer was flowing as fast as the sangria at the ethnically confused
"Fiesta Dinner" Monday night... Lured by tempting program notes of
"perhaps even a delicious marguerita", ResNet participants gathered at
Kennedy Grove to the Farallon- and Novell-sponsored juxtaposition of a
great spread of Mexican food and a rockin' caribbean steel drum band.
While the band played memorable renditions of "Tie A Yellow Ribbon 'Round
the Old Oak Tree", "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", and even some Beatles,
ResNetters sat around pin~ata-ed tables and discussed the day's sessions.
Things quickly degenerated to baser humors as Jeff Merriman -- who fellow
Stanfordite Rich Graves describes as looking like a young Johnny Carson or
an old Fred Savage -- ran around in a sombrero and cavorted with various
conference attendees. The door prizes were distributed to the masses, and
things got even zanier as the various pin~atas began a migration into a
Jenga-like tableau of unnatural positions on one particular table.
Big thanks to Farralon and Novell for the dinner, as well as the companies
which have been sponsoring the lunches and breaks throughout the
conference. Thanks also to Rich Graves and Kayt Sorhanindo of Stanford,
two important planners of the conference who I missed in my Day 0 batch of
thank yous.
Rumors have begun to swirl about ResNet '95... An early push has started
to draft MIT to host the next gathering, but other names being circulated
as either potentially interested in hosting or coercable into hosting are
Penn and Northwestern. This is by no means a comprehensive or official
list of possibilities -- just the scuttle that I happened to be privy to.
Stay tuned for the last installment of these reports this afternoon as
ResNet '94 winds down today. Reporting from room 344 Roble Hall,
Mike!
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