On Feb 1 1999 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania a Memorandum was issued in the case of ACLU et al vs Reno (Civil
Action NO. 98-5591). I have not had time to read the Memorandum but have found
the first 8 Findings of Fact interesting and so I am copying them here. The
full Memorandum is available at:
http://www.aclu.org/court/acluvrenoII_pi_order.html
It is of interest to me that the opinion of the Court represented by these
findings is never echoed by statements on the IFWP list because the
partipants in the ICANN't process have a narrower view which serves
their narrower interest.
"From the Findings of Fact:
A. The Internet and the World Wide Web
1.The Internet is a giant network that interconnects innumerable smaller
groups of linked computer networks: a network of networks. (Joint
Exhibit 3 1).
2.The nature of the Internet is such that it is very difficult, if not
impossible, to determine its size at a given moment. However, it is
indisputable that the Internet has experienced
extraordinary growth in the past few years. In 1981, fewer than 300
computers were linked to the Internet, and by 1989, the number stood
at fewer than 90,000 computers. By 1993, however, over 1,000,000
computers were linked. The number of hosts computers has more than
tripled from approximately 9.4 million hosts in January 1996
to more than 36.7 million hosts in July 1998. Approximately 70.2
million people of all ages use the Internet in the United States
alone. (Joint Exhibit 3 3).
3.Some of the computers and computer networks that make up the Internet
are owned by governmental and public institutions; some are owned by
non-profit organizations; and some are privately owned. The resulting
whole is a decentralized, global medium of communications -- or
"cyberspace" -- that links individuals, institutions, corporations,
and governments around the world. The Internet is an international
system. This communications medium allows any of the literally tens of
millions of people with access to the Internet to exchange
information. These communications can occur almost instantaneously,
and can be directed either to specific individuals, to a broader group
of individuals interested in a particular subject, or to the world as
a whole. (Joint Exhibit 3 4).
4.The content on the Internet is as diverse as human thought. The
Internet provides an easy and inexpensive way for a speaker to reach a
large audience, potentially of millions. The start-up and operating
costs entailed by communication on the Internet often are
significantly lower than those associated with use of other forms of
mass communication, such as television, radio, newspapers, and
magazines. Creation of a Web site can range in cost from a thousand to
tens of thousands of dollars, with monthly operating costs depending
on one's goals and the Web site's traffic. Commercial online services
such as America Online allow subscribers to create a limited number of
Web pages as a part of their subscription to AOL services. Any
Internet user can communicate by posting a message to one of the
thousands of available newsgroups and bulletin boards or by creating
one of their own or by engaging in an on-line "chat", and thereby
potentially reach an audience worldwide that shares an interest in a
particular topic. (Joint Exhibit 3 12).
5.Individuals can access the Internet through commercial and
non-commercial "Internet service providers" of ISPs that typically
offer modem access to a computer or computer network linked to the
Internet. Many such providers are commercial entities offering
Internet access for a monthly or hourly fee. Some Internet service
providers, however, are non-profit organizations that offer free or
very low cost access to the Internet. (Joint Exhibit 3 18).
6.Another common way that individuals can access the Internet is through
one of the major national commercial "online services" such as America
Online or the Microsoft Network. These online services offer
nationwide computer networks (so that subscribers can dial-in to a
local telephone number), and the services provide extensive and well
organized content within their own proprietary computer networks. In
addition to allowing access to the extensive content available within
each online service, the services also allow subscribers to link to
the much larger resources of the Internet. Full access to the online
service (including access to the Internet) can be obtained for
modest monthly or hourly fees. The major commercial online services
have millions of individual subscribers across the United States.
(Joint Exhibit 3 19).
7.In addition to ISPs, individuals may be able to access the Internet
through schools, employers, libraries, and community networks. (Joint
Exhibit 3 14-17).
8.Once one has access to the Internet, there are a wide variety of
different methods of communication and information exchange over the
network, utilizing a number of different Internet "protocols." These
many methods of communication and information retrieval are constantly
evolving and are therefore difficult to categorize concisely. The most
common methods of communications on the Internet (as well as within
the major online services) can be roughly grouped into six categories:
(1) one-to-one messaging (such as "e-mail"),
(2) one-to-many messaging (such as "listserv" or "mail exploders"),
(3) distributed message databases (such as "USENET newsgroups"),
(4) real time communication (such as "Internet Relay Chat"),
(5) real time remote computer utilization (such as "telnet"), and
. . . "
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Jay
,_ /\o \o/
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The above graphic is from the director of a French gov't research center.
He says it is the internet: someone is in trouble and someone else is coming
to help.
