RFC 77 (rfc77) - Page 2 of 9

Network meeting report

RFC 77                   Network Meeting Report         20 November 1970


7) Some people are interested in the network as an object of study.  In
   particular UCLA-Computer Science, and BBN wish to perform
   measurements on the network.  Is it appropriate to ask the NCP to
   keep statistics?

After this opening some discussion followed.

It was generally felt that changes to the protocol should be made in
bunches and at about six-month intervals rather than a continuous stream
of small changes.  Also that a lead time of three months was not over
optimistic.  The proposed change to the IMP-Host protocol to get rid of
marking was generally approved but it will not be implemented for some
time since casual changes to the protocol are undesirable.  Tom
O'Sullivan suggested that perhaps new and old protocols could work
together, that is the new protocol would support the old one as well as
provide better mechanisms where possible.  Steve Crocker suggested that
a new protocol might be developed as a private experimental protocol
between two or three sites.

It was stressed that it is necessary that the network be used to gain
experience, and that we should get teletype-like console use of remote
systems going before we get too involved in graphics.  Perhaps the
graphics protocol should be developed by a different set of people.  The
scheduling of a graphics protocol meeting was thus discouraged, but
papers should still be written.  Strong feelings were expressed in
favour of first developing use of remote subsystems and file
transmission instead of worrying about graphics at this stage.  It was
suggested that development of protocols at the higher levels be driven
by applications.

Documentation will be a major concern for network users.  Several people
mentioned that users at their sites have already begun to inquire about
the network.  As Eric Harslem put it "What does the ARPA Network have to
offer?"  Some sites (Multics, SRI) keep system documentation on-line.
It was suggested that the trillion bit store be used to keep on-line
documentation of all systems.

At this point Doug Engelbart gave a presentation on the Network
Information Center (NIC).  The goals or services of NIC have not been
well defined by anyone and have been left up to NIC to define.  NIC has
decided that one urgent task is to make information about the network
and the host systems on the network available to users of the network.
Doug has found that some people feel threatened by the revelation of
their documentation inadequacy.  Doug's project at SRI has built up a
system that allows the user to create catalogs and indices into a
collection of information.  The system has a master catalog of all
information files.  Each user may have a number of private (or shared)
catalogs.  The system provides a means of examining on-line the catalogs



J. Postel