discuss specific topics. Anybody interested in that topic, may
(usually) join that list. Some mailing lists have membership
restrictions, others have message content restrictions, and still
others are moderated. Most large, "public" mailing lists, such as
IETF and TCP-IP, have an additional mail address to which requests
to be added or deleted may be sent. Usually, these are of the
form listname-request.
There is a "list-of-lists" file available on the host
ftp.nisc.sri.com that lists most of the major mailing lists,
describes their primary topics, and explains how to subscribe to
them. The file is available for anonymous ftp in the netinfo
directory as interest-groups (that is, the path is:
netinfo/interest-groups). It can also be obtained via electronic
mail. Send a message to mail-server@nisc.sri.com with the body of
the message reading, "Send netinfo/interest-groups" and the file
will be returned in moderate size pieces via electronic mail.
How do I contact the administrator of a mailing list rather than
posting to the entire list?
For every mailing list mentioned in the "interest-groups" file,
there is a description of how to join the list or send other such
administrative messages to the person in charge of the list. In
general, however, it is usually safe to assume that you can send a
message to an address in the format of ListName-request@domain.
The convention of having a parallel mailbox conforming to the "-
request" format is very widely followed. All administrative
messages regarding using, joining, or quitting the list should be
sent to that mailbox instead of to the whole list so that the
readers of the list don't have to read them.
What are some good mailing lists?
The TCP-IP, IETF, and RFCDistribution lists are primary lists for
new Internet users who desire further information about current
and emerging developments in the Internet. The first two lists
are unmoderated discussion lists, and the latter is an
announcement service used by the RFCEditor.
How do I subscribe to the TCP-IP mailing list?
To be added to the TCP-IP mailing list, send a message to:
TCP-IP-REQUEST@NIC.DDN.MIL
How do I subscribe to the IETF mailing list?
To be added to the IETF mailing list, send a message to:
IETF-REQUEST@ISI.EDU
How do I subscribe to the RFCDistribution list?
To be added to the RFCDistribution list, send a message to:
RFC-REQUEST@NIC.DDN.MIL
Note that all announcements to this list are also sent to the IETF
list. So, if you are on the IETF list, you don't need to be on
this list, too.
How do I send mail to other networks?
Mail to the Internet is addressed in the form user@domain.
Remember that a domain name can have several components and the
name of each host is a node on the domain tree. So, an example of
an Internet mail address is june@nisc.sri.com.
There are several networks accessible via e-mail from the
Internet, but many of these networks do not use the same
addressing conventions the Internet does. Often you must route
mail to these networks through specific gateways as well, thus
further complicating the address.
Here are a few conventions you can use for sending mail from the
Internet to three networks with which Internet users often
correspond.
Internet user to Internet user:
username@hostname.subdomain.toplevel domain
e.g. gsmith@nisc.sri.COM
Internet user to BITNET user:
user%site.BITNET@BITNET-GATEWAY
e.g. gsmith%emoryu1.BITNET@cunyvm.cuny.edu.
gsmith%emoryu1@CORNELLC.CIT.CORNELL.EDU
Internet user to UUCP user:
user%host.UUCP@uunet.uu.net
user%domain@uunet.uu.net
Internet user to SprintMail user:
/G=Mary/S=Anderson/O=co.abc/ADMD=SprintMail/C=US/@SPRINT.COM
-or-
/PN=Mary.Anderson/O=co.abc/ADMD=SprintMail/C=US/@SPRINT.COM
(Case is significant.)
Internet user to CompuServe user:
Replace the comma in the CompuServe userid (represented
here
with x's) with a period, and add the compuserve.com
domain name.
CompuServe user to Internet user:
>Internet:user@host Insert >internet: before an
Internet address.
Internet user to MCIMail user:
accountname@mcimail.com
mci_id@mcimail.com
full_user_name@mcimail.com.
What is a newsgroup?
A newsgroup is a bulletin board which readers, interested in that
newsgroup's particular topic, can read and respond to messages
posted by other readers. Generally, there will be a few "threads"
of discussion going on at the same time, but they all share some
common theme. There are approximately 900 newsgroups, and there
are more being added all the time.
There are two types of newsgroups: moderated and unmoderated. A
moderated newsgroup does not allow individuals to post directly to
the newsgroup. Rather, the postings go to the newsgroup's
moderator who determines whether or not to pass the posting to the
entire group. An unmoderated newsgroup allows a reader to post
directly to the other readers.
How do I subscribe to a newsgroup?
You don't subscribe to a newsgroup. Either you get it on your
machine or you don't. If there's one you want, all you can do is
ask the systems administrator to try to get it for you. The same
is true for creating newsgroups.
10. Miscellaneous "Internet lore" questions
What does :-) mean?
In many electronic mail messages, it is sometimes useful to
indicate that part of a message is meant in jest. It is also
sometimes useful to communicate emotion which simple words do not
readily convey. To provide these nuances, a collection of "smiley
faces" has evolved. If you turn your head sideways to the left,
:-) appears as a smiling face. Some of the more common faces are:
:-) smile :-( frown
:) also a smile ;-) wink
:-D laughing 8-) wide-eyed
:-} grin :-X close mouthed
:-] smirk :-o oh, no!
What do "btw", "fyi", "imho", "wrt", and "rtfm" mean?
Often commmon expressions are abbreviated in informal network
postings. These abbreviations stand for "by the way", "for your
information", "in my humble [or honest] opinion", "with respect
to", and "read the f*ing manual" (with the "f" word varying
according to the vehemence of the reader).
What is the "FAQ" list?
This list provides answers to "Frequently Asked Questions" that
often appear on various USENET newsgroups. The list is posted
every four to six weeks to the news.announce.newusers group. It
is intended to provide a background for new users learning how to
use the news. As the FAQ list provide new users with the answers
to such questions, it helps keep the newsgroups themselves
comparatively free of repetition. Often specific newsgroups will
have and frequently post versions of a FAQ list that are specific
to their topics.
Other information is also routinely posted. Here are the subject
lines of several general information postings provided on USENET:
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (the "FAQ" list)
Introduction to news.announce
What is Usenet?
Rules for posting to Usenet
How to Create a New Newsgroup
How to Create a New Trial Newsgroup
A Primer on How to Work With the Usenet Community
Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette
Hints on writing style for Usenet
USENET Software: History and Sources
List of Active Newsgroups
Alternative Newsgroup Hierarchies, Part I
Alternative Newsgroup Hierarchies, Part II
How to Construct the Mailpaths File
Regional Newsgroup Hierarchies, Part I
Regional Newsgroup Hierarchies, Part II
Regional Newsgroup Hierarchies, Part III
List of Moderators
Publicly Accessible Mailing Lists, Part I
Publicly Accessible Mailing Lists, Part II
Publicly Accessible Mailing Lists, Part III
List of Periodic Informational Postings
How to Get Information about Networks
A Guide to Social Newsgroups and Mailing Lists
All of these articles are normally archived for FTP access on
pit-manager.mit.edu in /pub/usenet/news.announce.newusers.
11. Suggested Reading
For further information about the Internet and its protocols in
general, you may choose to obtain copies of the following works:
Bowers, K., T. LaQuey, J. Reynolds, K. Roubicek, M. Stahl, and A.
Yuan, "Where to Start - A Bibliography of General Internetworking
Information", RFC1175, FYI 3, CNRI, U Texas, ISI, BBN, SRI,
Mitre, August 1990.
Comer, D., "Internetworking with TCP/IP: Principles, Protocols,
and Architecture", Prentice Hall, New Jersey, 1989.
Krol, E., "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Internet", RFC1118,
University of Illinois Urbana, September 1989.
12. References
[1] Reynolds, J., and J. Postel, "Assigned Numbers", RFC1060,
USC/Information Sciences Institute, March 1990.
[2] Postel, J., Editor, "IAB Official Protocol Standards", RFC1280,
Internet Activities Board, March 1992.
[3] Postel, J., and J. Reynolds, "File Transfer Protocol (FTP), RFC
959, USC/Information Sciences Institute, October 1985.
[4] Postel, J., "Internet Protocol - DARPA Internet Program Protocol
Specification", RFC791, DARPA, September 1981.
[5] Postel, J., "Transmission Control Protocol - DARPA Internet
Program Protocol Specification", RFC793, DARPA, September 1981.
[6] Leiner, B., R. Cole, J. Postel, and D. Mills, "The DARPA Internet
Protocol Suite", IEEE INFOCOM85, Washington D.C., March 1985.
Also in IEEE Communications Magazine, March 1985. Also as
ISI/RS-85-153.
[7] Cerf, V., "The Internet Activities Board" RFC1160, CNRI, May
1990.
[8] Postel, J., "Simple Mail Transfer Protocol", RFC821,
USC/Information Sciences Institute, August 1982.
[9] Postel, J., and J. Reynolds, "TELNET Protocol Specification", RFC
854, USC/Information Sciences Institute, May 1983.
[10] Postel, J., "Request for Comments on Request for Comments -
Instructions to RFCAuthors", RFC1111, USC/Information Sciences
Institute, August 1989.
[11] Malkin, G., A. Marine, and J. Reynolds, "FYI on Questions and
Answers: Answers to Commonly Asked 'Experienced Internet User'
Questions", FYI 7, RFC1207, FTP Software, SRI, USC/Information
Sciences Institute, February 1991.
[12] Postel, J., "Introduction to the STD Notes", RFC1311,
USC/Information Sciences Institute, March 1992.
13. Condensed Glossary
As with any profession, computers have a particular terminology all
their own. Below is a condensed glossary to assist in making some
sense of the Internet world.
ACM Association for Computing Machinery
A group established in 1947 to promote professional
development and research on computers.
address There are two separate uses of this term in internet
networking: "electronic mail address" and "internet
address". An electronic mail address is the string
of characters that you must give an electronic mail
program to direct a message to a particular person.
See "internet address" for its definition.
AI Artificial Intelligence
The branch of computer science which deals with the
simulation of human intelligence by computer systems.
AIX Advanced Interactive Executive
IBM's version of Unix.
ANSI American National Standards Institute
A group that certifies organizations which develop U.S.
standards for the information processing industry. ANSI
accredited groups participate in defining network protocol
standards.
ARP Address Resolution Protocol
An Internet protocol which runs on Ethernet and all IEEE
802.X LANs which maps internet addresses to MAC addresses.
ARPA Advanced Research Projects Agency
The former name of what is now called DARPA.
ARPANET Advanced Research Projects Agency Network
A pioneering long haul network funded by ARPA. It
served as the basis for early networking research as
well as a central backbone during the development of
the Internet. The ARPANET consisted of individual
packet switching computers interconnected by leased lines.
AS Autonomous System
A collection of gateways (routers) under a single
administrative authority using a common Interior Gateway
Protocol for routing packets.
ASCII American (National) Standard Code for Information Interchange
B Byte
One character of information, usually eight bits wide.
b bit - binary digit
The smallest amount of information which may be stored
in a computer.
BBN Bolt Beranek and Newman, Inc.
The Cambridge, MA company responsible for development,
operation and monitoring of the ARPANET, and later,
the Internet core gateway system, the CSNET Coordination
and Information Center (CIC), and NSFNET Network
Service Center (NNSC).
BITNET Because It's Time Network
BITNET has about 2,500 host computers, primarily at
universities, in many countries. It is managed by
EDUCOM, which provides administrative support and
information services. There are three
main constituents of the network: BITNET in the United
States and Mexico, NETNORTH in Canada, and EARN in
Europe. There are also AsiaNet, in Japan, and
connections in South America. See CREN.
bps bits per second
A measure of data transmission speed.
BSD Berkeley Software Distribution
Term used when describing different versions
of the Berkeley UNIX software, as in "4.3BSD
UNIX".
catenet A network in which hosts are connected to networks
with varying characteristics, and the networks
are interconnected by gateways (routers). The
Internet is an example of a catenet.
CCITT International Telegraph and Telephone
Consultative Committee
core gateway
Historically, one of a set of gateways (routers)
operated by the Internet Network Operations Center
at BBN. The core gateway system forms a central part
of Internet routing in that all groups had to advertise
paths to their networks from a core gateway.
CREN The Corporation for Research and Educational Networking
BITNET and CSNET have recently merged to form CREN.
CSNET Computer + Science Network
A large data communications network for institutions doing
research in computer science. It uses several different
protocols including some of its own. CSNET sites include
universities, research laboratories, and commercial
companies. See CREN.
DARPA U.S. Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
The government agency that funded the ARPANET and later
started the Internet.
Datagram
A self-contained, independent entity of data carrying
sufficient information to be routed from the source
to the destination data terminal equipment without
reliance on earlier exchanges between this source
and destination data terminal equipment and the
transporting network.
DCA Defense Communications Agency
Former name of the Defense Information Systems Agency
(DISA). See DISA.
DDN Defense Data Network
Comprises the MILNET and several other DoD networks.
DDN NIC The network information center at Network Solutions, Inc.
It is the primary repository for RFCs and Internet Drafts,
as well as providing other services.
DEC Digital Equipment Corporation
DECnet Digital Equipment Corporation network
A networking protocol for DEC computers and network devices.
default route
A routing table entry which is used to direct any data
addressed to any network numbers not explicitly listed
in the routing table.
DISA Defense Information Systems Agency
Formerly called DCA, this is the government agency
responsible for installing the Defense Data Network
(DDN) portion of the Internet, including the MILNET
lines and nodes. Currently, DISA administers the
DDN, and supports the user assistance services of the
DDN NIC.
DNS The Domain Name System is a mechanism used in
the Internet for translating names of host computers
into addresses. The DNS also allows host computers
not directly on the Internet to have registered
names in the same style, but returns the electronic
mail gateway which accesses the non-Internet network
instead of an IP address.
DOD U.S. Department of Defense
DOE U.S. Department of Energy
dot address (dotted address notation)
Dot address refers to the common notation for Internet
addresses of the form A.B.C.D; where each letter represents,
in decimal, one byte of the four byte IP address.
Dynamic Adaptive Routing
Automatic rerouting of traffic based on a sensing and analysis
of current actual network conditions. NOTE: this does not
include cases of routing decisions taken on predefined
information.
EARN European Academic Research Network
EBCDIC Extended Binary-coded Decimal Interchange Code
EGP Exterior Gateway Protocol
A protocol which distributes routing information to the
gateways (routers) which connect autonomous systems.
Ethernet
A network standard for the hardware and data link levels.
There are two types of Ethernet: Digital/Intel/Xerox (DIX)
and IEEE 802.3.
FDDI Fiber Distributed Data Interface
FDDI is a high-speed (100Mb) token ring LAN.
FIPS Federal Information Processing Standard
FTP File Transfer Protocol
The Internet standard high-level protocol for
transferring files from one computer to another.
gateway See router
GB Gigabyte
A unit of data storage size which represents 10^9 (one
billion) characters of information.
Gb Gigabit
10^9 bits of information (usually used to express a
data transfer rate; as in, 1 gigabit/second = 1Gbps).
GNU Gnu's Not UNIX
A UNIX-compatible operating system developed by the
Free Software Foundation.
header The portion of a packet, preceding the actual data,
containing source and destination addresses and
error-checking fields.
host number
The part of an internet address that designates which
node on the (sub)network is being addressed.
HP Hewlett-Packard
I/O Input/Output
IAB Internet Activities Board
The IAB is the coordinating committee for Internet
design, engineering and management.
IBM International Business Machines Corporation
ICMP Internet Control Message Protocol
ICMP is an extension to the Internet Protocol. It
allows for the generation of error messages,
test packets and informational messages related to IP.
IEEE Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers
IETF Internet Engineering Task Force
The IETF is a large open community of network designers,
operators, vendors, and researchers whose purpose is to
coordinate the operation, management and evolution of
the Internet, and to resolve short- and mid-range
protocol and architectural issues. It is a major source
of proposed protocol standards which are submitted to the
Internet Activities Board for final approval. The IETF
meets three times a year and extensive minutes of the
plenary proceedings are issued.
internet
internetwork
Any connection of two or more local or wide-area networks.
Internet
The global collection of interconnected local, mid-level and
wide-area networks which use IP as the network layer
protocol.
internet address
An assigned number which identifies a host in an internet.
It has two or three parts: network number, optional subnet
number, and host number.
IP Internet Protocol
The network layer protocol for the Internet. It is a packet
switching, datagram protocol defined in RFC791.
IRTF Internet Research Task Force
The IRTF is a community of network researchers,
generally with an Internet focus. The work of the IRTF
is governed by its Internet Research Steering Group (IRSG).
ISO International Organization for Standardization
KB Kilobyte
A unit of data storage size which represents 10^3
(one thousand) characters of information.
Kb Kilobit
10^3 bits of information (usually used to express a
data transfer rate; as in, 1 kilobit/second = 1Kbps = 1Kb).
LAN Local Area Network
A network that takes advantage of the proximity of computers
to offer relatively efficient, higher speed communications
than long-haul or wide-area networks.
LISP List Processing Language
A high-level computer language invented by Professor John
McCarthy in 1961 to support research into computer based
logic, logical reasoning, and artificial intelligence. It
was the first symbolic (as opposed to numeric) computer
processing language.
MAC Medium Access Control
For broadcast networks, it is the method which devices use
to determine which device has line access at any given
time.
Mac Apple Macintosh computer.
MAN Metropolitan Area Network
MB Megabyte
A unit of data storage size which represents
10^6 (one million) characters of information.
Mb Megabit
10^6 bits of information (usually used to express a
data transfer rate; as in, 1 megabit/second = 1Mbps).
MILNET Military Network
A network used for unclassified military production
applications. It is part of the DDN and the Internet.
MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology
MTTF Mean Time to Failure
The average time between hardware breakdown or loss of
service. This may be an empirical measurement or a
calculation based on the MTTF of component parts.
MTTR Mean Time to Recovery (or Repair)
The average time it takes to restore service after a
breakdown or loss. This is usually an empirical measurement.
MVS Multiple Virtual Storage
An IBM operating system based on OS/1.
NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NBS National Bureau of Standards
Now called NIST.
network number
The part of an internet address which designates the
network to which the addressed node belongs.
NFS Network File System
A network service that lets a program running on one
computer to use data stored on a different computer on
the same internet as if it were on its own disk.
NIC Network Information Center
An organization which provides network users with
information about services provided by the network.
NOC Network Operations Center
An organization that is responsible for maintaining
a network.
NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology
Formerly NBS.
NSF National Science Foundation
NSFNET National Science Foundation Network
The NSFNET is a highspeed "network of networks" which is
hierarchical in nature. At the highest level is a
backbone network currently comprising 16 nodes connected
to a 45Mbps facility which spans the continental United
States. Attached to that are mid-level networks and
attached to the mid-levels are campus and local
networks. NSFNET also has connections out of the U.S.
to Canada, Mexico, Europe, and the Pacific Rim. The
NSFNET is part of the Internet.
NSFNET Mid-level Level Network
A network connected to the highest level of the NSFNET that
covers a region of the United States. It is to mid-level
networks that local sites connect. The mid-level networks
were once called "regionals".
OSI Open Systems Interconnection
A set of protocols designed to be an international standard
method for connecting unlike computers and networks. Europe
has done most of the work developing OSI and will probably
use it as soon as possible.
OSI Reference Model
An "outline" of OSI which defines its seven layers and
their functions. Sometimes used to help describe other
networks.
OSPF Open Shortest-Path First Interior Gateway Protocol
A proposed replacement for RIP. It addresses some
problems of RIP and is based upon principles that have
been well-tested in non-internet protocols. Originally
acronymed as OSPFIGP.
packet The unit of data sent across a packet switching network.
The term is used loosely. While some Internet
literature uses it to refer specifically to data sent
across a physical network, other literature views
the Internet as a packet switching network
and describes IP datagrams as packets.
PC Personal Computer
PCNFS Personal Computer Network File System
PPP Point-to-Point Protocol
The Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) provides a method for
transmitting datagrams over serial point-to-point links.
protocol
A formal description of message formats and the rules
two computers must follow to exchange those messages.
Protocols can describe low-level details of
machine-to-machine interfaces (e.g., the order in
which bits and bytes are sent across a wire)
or high-level exchanges between allocation
programs (e.g., the way in which two programs
transfer a file across the Internet).
RFCThe Internet's Request for Comments documents series
The RFCs are working notes of the Internet research and
development community. A document in this series may be on
essentially any topic related to computer communication, and
may be anything from a meeting report to the specification of
a standard.
RIP Routing Information Protocol
One protocol which may be used on internets simply to pass
routing information between gateways. It is used on many
LANs and on some of the NSFNET intermediate level networks.
RJE Remote Job Entry
The general protocol for submitting batch jobs and
retrieving the results.
router A special-purpose dedicated computer that attaches to
two or more networks and routes packets from one
network to the other. In particular, an Internet
router forwards IP datagrams among the networks it
connects. Gateways route packets to other
gateways until they can be delivered to the final
destination directly across one physical network.
RPC Remote Procedure Call
An easy and popular paradigm for implementing the
client-server model of distributed computing.
server A computer that shares its resources, such as printers
and files, with other computers on the network. An
example of this is a Network Files System (NFS)
Server which shares its disk space with one or more
workstations that may not have local disk drives of
their own.
SLIP Serial Line Internet Protocol
SLIP is currently a defacto standard, commonly used for
point-to-point serial connections running TCP/IP. It is
not an Internet standard but is defined in RFC1055.
SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
The Internet standard protocol for transferring
electronic mail messages from one computer to another.
SMTP specifies how two mail systems interact and the
format of control messages they exchange to transfer mail.
SNA System Network Architecture
IBM's data communications protocol.
SNMP Simple Network Management Protocol
The Simple Network Management Protocol (RFC1157) is the
Internet's standard for remote monitoring and management
of hosts, routers and other nodes and devices on a network.
subnet A portion of a network, which may be a physically independent
network, which shares a network address with other portions
of the network and is distinguished by a subnet number. A
subnet is to a network what a network is to an internet.
subnet number
A part of the internet address which designates a subnet.
It is ignored for the purposes internet routing, but is
used for intranet routing.
T1 A term for a digital carrier facility used to transmit a
DS-1 formatted digital signal at 1.544 megabits per second.
T3 A term for a digital carrier facility used to transmit a DS-3
formatted digital signal at 44.746 megabits per second.
TCP Transmission Control Protocol
A transport layer protocol for the Internet. It is a
connection oriented, stream protocol defined by RFC793.
TCP/IP Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
This is a common shorthand which refers to the suite
of application and transport protocols which run over IP.
These include FTP, TELNET, SMTP, and UDP (a transport
layer protocol).
Telenet A public packet-switching network operated by US Sprint.
Also known as "SprintNet".
TELNET The Internet standard protocol for remote terminal
connection service. TELNET allows a user at one site
to interact with a remote timesharing system at
another site as if the user's terminal was connected
directly to the remote computer.
Token Ring
A type of LAN. Examples are IEEE 802.5, ProNET-10/80 and
FDDI. The term "token ring" is often used to denote 802.5
Tymnet A public character-switching/packet-switching network
operated by British Telecom.
UDP User Datagram Protocol
A transport layer protocol for the Internet. It is a
datagram protocol which adds a level of reliability and
multiplexing to IP datagrams. It is defined in RFC768.
ULTRIX UNIX-based operating system for Digital Equipment Corporation
computers.
UNIX An operating system developed by Bell Laboratories that
supports multiuser and multitasking operations.
UUCP UNIX-to-UNIX Copy Program
A protocol used for communication between consenting
UNIX systems.
VMS Virtual Memory System
A Digital Equipment Corporation operating system.
WAN Wide Area Network
WHOIS An Internet program which allows users to query a database of
people and other Internet entities, such as domains,
networks, and hosts, kept at the DDN NIC. The information for
people shows a person's company name, address, phone number
and email address.
XNS Xerox Network System
A data communications protocol suite developed by Xerox. It
uses Ethernet to move the data between computers.
X.25 A data communications interface specification developed to
describe how data passes into and out of public data
communications networks. The public networks such as
Sprintnet and Tymnet use X.25 to interface to customer
computers.
14. Security Considerations
Security issues are not discussed in this memo.
15. Authors' Addresses
Gary Scott Malkin
Xylogics, Inc.
53 Third Avenue
Burlington, MA 01803
Phone: (617) 272-8140
EMail: gmalkin@Xylogics.COM
April N. Marine
SRI International
Network Information Systems Center
333 Ravenswood Avenue, EJ294
Menlo Park, CA 94025
Phone: (415) 859-5318
EMail: april@nisc.sri.com