RFC 1775 (rfc1775) - Page 1 of 4
To Be "On" the Internet
Alternative Format: Original Text Document
Network Working Group D. Crocker
Request for Comments: 1775 Brandenburg Consulting
Category: Informational March 1995
To Be "On" the Internet
Status of this Memo
This memo provides information for the Internet community. This memo
does not specify an Internet standard of any kind. Distribution of
this memo is unlimited.
Abstract
The Internet permits different levels of access for consumers and
providers of service. The nature of those differences is quite
important in the capabilities They afford. Hence, it is appropriate
to provide terminology that distinguishes among the range, so that
the Internet community can gain some clarity when distinguishing
whether a user (or an organization) is "on" the Internet. This
document suggests four terms, for distinguishing the major classes of
access.
1. INTRODUCTION
The Internet is many things to many people. It began as a technology
and has grown into a global service. With the growth has come
increased complexity in details of the technology and service,
resulting in confusion when trying to determine whether a given user
is "on" the Internet. Who is on the Internet? What capabilities do
they have? This note is an attempt to aid Internet consumers and
providers in determining the basic types of end-user access that
distinguish critical differences in Internet attachment.
The list was developed primarily for the perspective of users, rather
than for the technical community. The definitions in this list take
the perspective that users are primarily interested in application
services. A curious implication is that some of the definitions do
not rely on the direct use of the underlying Internet connectivity
protocols, TCP/IP. For many technical discussions, therefore, these
terms will not be appropriate.
Crocker