[9583] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: Internet in a box
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Peter Deutsch)
Wed Jan 12 19:33:01 1994
From: Peter Deutsch <peterd@bunyip.com>
Date: Wed, 12 Jan 1994 19:23:17 -0500
In-Reply-To: John Galloway's message as of Jan 11, 14:36
To: jrg@galloway.sj.ca.us
Cc: stpeters@dawn.crd.ge.com, com-priv@psi.com
[ jrg@galloway.sj.ca.us wrote: ]
. . .
> > Now, BBS operators do need to recognize the extra value
> > that exists in allowing users to "escape" to the net if
> But the net IS the resource the users are accessing, they
> don't escape to it. Your own system is your window to the
> net, not the BBS.
I think this is a matter of perspective. I see a real
value for certain types of user to have a well-maintained
system, with added help info, installed and supported
tools and all that. This sounds suspiciously like what
people pay to get now from the World, or Delphi, or a well
setup BBS with an Internet link. Sure the user doesn't
care if the info actually resides locally, or whether
they're really going out on a gopher link to another
machine, provided when they clicked on it, the info is
there. Ensuring the info is there will be the tricky bit.
We may not be calling them sysops, but I see the value of
someone's role here.
> > Remember, users don't care about connectivity, protocols
> > or other wonders of technology. They want it to be easier
> > to find things. Sounds like the role of a sysop to me...
>
> But it will be advances in netwide searching and sorting and
> information structuring that will make it easier to find things
> and which site what is on will become less and less important.
I absolutely agree and think this reinforces my point. A
well set up machine staffed by competent sysops will help
make the transistion onto the net seamless when it's
needed. There is definitely a value-added service there.
> This also means (I think) that more and more info will be available
> directly from its source/generator rather than being "collected"
> by anyone. Now the source of the info liekly will not want
> to source it to the net directly, so there is a role for local
> well maintained storage (sort of a local cache) with a big net pipe,
> perhaps the BBS can eveolve into this role, but I'm not sure its a giant
> opportunity.
I do think there's real money to be made providing
sysop-like functionality, provided the sysops remember
that their value is in their managerial role. After all,
the numbers I've seen estimating the size of the existing
BBS market are pretty good for a cottage industry. Throw
in a couple more turns of the growth crank for the
Internet, attach a few dozen BBSs and I think we'll see a
real growth industry open up.
As this happens I think we'll start to see a real
separation of the two roles currently played by services
such as Compuserve, AOL, World, etc. The connectivity role
and the information management role _can_ be two separate
businesses, with people using their "Internet in a Box"-like
links to get the cheapest bit pipe onto the net, then
picking the BBS-like thingie of their choice to give them
the home base they're most comfortable with. The UNIX
geeks will have their raw UNIX, the kids will have their
MTV look-alike, and so on. If the info you need isn't
available from your particular home base, you'll cruise
off to the Internet shopping mall of your choice to fetch
it. BBSs are thus I think a trend to watch in the next
year or two.
- peterd
--
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"What do thay got, a whole lot of sand? We got a hot crustacean band!
Each little clam here, know how to jam here! Under the Sea!"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
