[9807] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: Clarification re "Who (wa)s On (the 'net) First)"
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Glenn S. Tenney)
Fri Jan 21 16:54:08 1994
Date: Fri, 21 Jan 1994 11:45:33 -0800
To: ddern@world.std.com (Daniel P Dern), com-priv@psi.com
From: tenney@netcom.com (Glenn S. Tenney)
At 2:25 PM 1/21/94 -0500, Daniel P Dern wrote:
>"Who (what organization/site) was the first to offer end user
>shell accounts on systems with IP access to the Internet (modulo
>all them NSFnet, AUP and pre-CIX reachability issues :-( )
>to private individuals, without 'membership requirements' such
>as being an employee, student, etc?"
>
>And the answer is "The World, run by Software Tool and Die"
Well, that's not the answer to the question you asked above... MIT offered
"shell accounts" to DM and AI at least ten years before The World did. MIT
had NO requirement that anyone be an employee or student -- ie. there were
NO membership requirements. They did not charge for these accounts, and
you had full IP access. I know, since I had an account there circa 1980.
Perhaps you meant to ask who SOLD such accounts?
---
Glenn Tenney
tenney@netcom.com Amateur radio: AA6ER
(415) 574-3420 Fax: (415) 574-0546
