[286] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: one commercial site's interpretation of NSFNET restrictions
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Erik E. Fair" (Your Friendly Postm)
Tue Mar 5 04:38:22 1991
From: "Erik E. Fair" (Your Friendly Postmaster) <fair@apple.com>
In-Reply-To: <m0jDWZT-0003k0C@crane.aa.ox.com>
To: Edward Vielmetti <emv@ox.com>
Cc: com-priv@uu.psi.com
Date: Tue, 05 Mar 91 01:22:51 -0800
An Opinion:
Making some file (regardless of content) available for anonymous FTP is
not "use of the network" - it is use of one's own local computation and
storage resources. Therefore, putting a file out for anonymous FTP
cannot be construed as misuse of the Internet, because it is not "use."
It is up to the user who connects to any given FTP server on the
Internet to decide whether his FTP transaction constitutes misuse of
the network.
An Aside:
Of course, if such a file contained material objectionable to the
powers that be (whoever that is), it is vastly easier to pressure the
site which is making the file available to remove it, than to attempt
to compel the millions of Internet users not to FTP it.
Erik E. Fair apple!fair fair@apple.com
