Organization: Bar-Ilan University Computing Center, Israel
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1992 08:39:19 IST
From: Hank Nussbacher <HANK@BARILVM.BITNET>
Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish,talk.politics.mideast
Subject: FAQ: Israeli Internet - ILAN

 IRFC-12                                     Israeli Academic Network
                                               Information Center
 Hank Nussbacher (HANK@VM.TAU.AC.IL)         Computation Center
 December  1992                              Tel Aviv University
                                             Ramat Aviv, Israel
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
 The following document is a collection of Frequently Asked Questions
 about the Israeli section of the network.  This document is not
 meant to be a network guide or tutorial.  Where appropriate, pointers
 to other network documents of a general nature have been mentioned.

 Updates from a previous version are marked with a '|' in column 1.

 If you have any questions you would like added, please send them to
 the author mentioned above.
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Table of Contents:

 1.  What is MACHBA?
 2.  What is ILAN?
 3.  What connections are there between Israel and abroad?  What is
     their bandwidth?  Who maintains them?  Who pays for them?
 4.  What is a cisco router?
 5.  What services does the network provide?
 6.  How do I know certain communication lines are up or down?
 7.  How do I determine whether a communication line is loaded?
|8.  What lines exist between universities in Israel?
 9.  What is IRC?
|10. Is there an Israeli bulletin board and what can I post there?
 11. What is the guidelines for use of ILAN?
 12. Who is currently a member of ILAN?
 13. Is there a document for novice TCPIP users to tell them everything
     they don't know?
 14. What is Archie?
 15. Where can I keep up to date about Machba and ILAN?
|16. Why can't commercial companies connect to ILAN via the
     nearest academic institute for a fee?
|17. What is Aleph and how does one use it from the network?
 18. What is Trickle?  What is Listserv?
 19. What RSCS connections exist from Israel to abroad?
 20. What is INN and how do I use it?
|21. What is Usenet news and how does it work in Israel?
|22. What is Gopher and how does it work in Israel?
 23. What is WWW and how does it work in Israel?
|24. Is there a document of all Israeli based lists/discussion groups?
|25. What is the complete list of 3rd level domains in Israel that
|    are currently connected to ILAN?
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) about
                     the Israeli section of the network
                   --------------------------------------

 1.  Q: What is MACHBA?
     A: Machba is the abbreviation for Merkaz haHishoovim haBein-
        Universitai (InterUniversity Computation Center).  Machba is an
        Amuta (association) formed by the seven founding universities -
        Hebrew University, Bar-Ilan University, Tel-Aviv University,
        Technion, Weizmann Institute of Science, Ben-Gurion University,
        and Haifa University.  Machba pays for and owns the ILAN network.

 2.  Q: What is ILAN?
     A: ILAN is a network owned and operated by Machba - the Israeli
        Interuniversity Computer Center.  Machba is an amuta owned by
        the seven principal universities in Israel. ILAN, the Israeli
        Academic Network, was formed in November 1988 as an outgrowth
        of the Bitnet network that existed in Israel.  The initial
        network, established in 1984, has been dedicated since then to
        universities, academic and research institutes as well as
        non-profit research institutes.

 3.  Q: What connections are there between Israel and abroad?  What is
        their bandwidth?  Who maintains them?  Who pays for them?
     A: There are two physical links to abroad.  One starts at the Weizmann
        Institute of Science and ends in the United States within an
        NSF regional network called Nysernet.  The physical connection
        terminates in New York City.  This link is a 64kb satellite
        link.  The second connection is from Tel-Aviv University to
        CERN (Geneva).  This is also a 64kb link via an undersea
        fiber-optic cable called EMOS.  The fiber-optic link is faster
        for Telnet connections since it does not suffer from satellite
        delays.  Both these links are paid for and owned by Machba.

        An upgrade for the Israel-USA satellite link to 128kb has
        been ordered as of mid-March 1992.

 4.  Q: What is a cisco router?
     A: A cisco is a multi-protocol router that allows for the creation
        of a WAN - Wide Area Network.  These boxes connect remote LANs
        together and are the most popular router on the market today.
        Multi-protocol routers can be considered the modem of the '90s.
        ciscos are the routers that are used exclusively by ILAN for
        creating the nation-wide WAN.

        router: A system responsible for making decisions about which of
        several paths network (or Internet) traffic will follow.  To do
        this it uses a routing protocol to gain information about the
        network, and algorithms to choose the best route based on
        several criteria known as "routing metrics."

        Definition of "router" taken from RFC1208 - "A Glossary of
        Networking Terms" available via anonymous FTP from
        vm.tau.ac.il (cd hank.400, get rfc1208.text).

        A multi-protocol router is one that handles not only TCPIP
        routing (as explained above) but one that can handle
        simultaneously other protocols as well, such as DECNET,
        Appletalk, and Novell IPX.

        The ILAN network currently handles routing for IP, DECNET
        and Appletalk between the various universities.

 5.  Q: What services does the network provide?
         - Transfer files of any type: data, programs, documents
         - Receive or send electronic mail to one or more network users
         - Exchange immediate messages in "realtime" with network
           user in EARN or Bitnet or the Internet
         - Share computer resources
         - Access remote applications, databases or software libraries
         - Distribute electronic newsletters and forums
         - Provide access to the Aleph system - the Israeli
           inter-univerity library computerized card catalog system
         - Remote login to other computers in Israel or
           other computers located in the global Internet
         - Access to remote databases via remote login
        All TCPIP functions (Internet) are available as well as all
        RSCS (Bitnet) functions for Bitnet nodes.  All Bitnet functions
        are piggy-backed on top of the TCPIP network via a protocol
        called VMNET.  This is all transparent to the user.

 6.  Q: How do I know certain communication lines are up or down?
     A: If you are in Israel and wish to know whether the USA side
        of the link is operational issue the command 'ping 192.91.187.1'.
        If you do not get a successful response from the PING command
        that means that the link is not working.  If you get a successful
        response that means that the link is operational all the way to
        Nysernet.

        To check the link to Geneva issue the command 'ping 192.65.184.57'
        The same rules apply as above.  The link to Geneva services all
        traffic to and from Europe.

        If you succeed with the above PING commands but still cannot
        connect to your intended site, that means that either the host
        system is down or there is some other connectivity problem other
        than the Israel-USA IP link or Israel-Switzerland link.

        Please be aware that the syntax for the PING command is different
        on every operating system.  Please refer to your computer
        center or online help for further details.

        Do not set up a process to PING a system on a constant basis.
        This affects overall network response time.  Use the ping
        command only in interactive mode and not excessively.

 7.  Q: How do I determine whether a communication line is loaded?
     A: The two major lines are the two links to the USA and Europe.
        Once again, PING can be used to determine whether a link
        is overloaded.  Issue the ping command with the length option
        of 512.  This will send a 512 byte ping request to the other
        side of the link (use one of the two addresses listed in the
        question above).  For the link to Europe: if response time
        is greater than .4 seconds then the link is being used heavily
        at the present time.  Remember to repeat the ping for
        20 times and use the average.  For the link to the USA repeat
        the same test and if the average response time is greater than
        1.6 seconds then the link is being heavily used.

        As mentioned above, do not overuse the ping command.  Sending
        excessive ping packets will affect overall network thruput and
        should only be used in limited circumstances.  Under no
        condition should you set up an automated process to determine
        system load based on ping response times.  This would fall
        under the category of what is not allowed on the network.
        Refer to question #11, below.

 8.  Q: What lines exist between universities in Israel?
     A: The latest "Alon Machba" has a map of the network, but in case
        you didn't see it:
        Technion-Tel Aviv University                64kb
|       Tel-Aviv University-Bar-Ilan University    128kb
        Tel-Aviv University-Hebrew University       64kb
        Tel-Aviv University-Weizmann                64kb
        Weizmann-Ben Gurion University              64kb
        Weizmann-Hebrew University                  64kb
        Hebrew University-Ben Gurion University     64kb
|       Haifa University-TAU                       128kb
        Bar-Ilan University-Weizmann                64kb
        Technion-Hebrew University                  9.6kb -> 64kb
        One 9.6kb line is waiting to be upgraded to 64kb.

        Due to intelligent routing algorithms in the cisco routers,
        all lines are used for load balancing traffic between
        universities.

        A request has been sent to Bezek as of September 1991 to upgrade
        all ten lines to 128kb.

 9.  Q: What is IRC?
     A: IRC is a system to converse interactively with many other
        people throughout the world.  The system is divided into
        channels and each channel has its own topic.  Users must
        be logged on to some system within Israel before they may use
        IRC.

 10. Q: Is there an Israeli bulletin board and what can I post there?
|    A: Yes, there are three and to subscribe send mail with the text:
|       SUBSCRIBE IL-BOARD firstname lastname
|       or
|       SUBSCRIBE IL-TALK firstname lastname
|       or
|       SUBSCRIBE IL-ADS firstname lastname
|       to LISTSERV@VM.TAU.AC.IL
|
|       To post to any of these lists send mail to listname@VM.TAU.AC.IL.
|
|       - IL-BOARD should be used as a bulletin board would be used in a
|       public area.  Questions about PC software, looking for pen-pals,
|       questions about the Israeli Internet, looking for general
|       information about Israel, etc. are all allowed.
|
|       If you feel a need to comment or flame or rebute some comment
|       made by someone in IL-BOARD, the discussion should be
|       followed-up on IL-TALK.
|
|       If you wish to post any private advertisement - please use the
|       IL-ADS list and not IL-BOARD.
|
|       - IL-TALK is open to the general public for discussion of
|       any topic that relates to Jews and Israel.  This is a forum
|       where discussion is encouraged.  This forum will be very similar
|       to the talk.politics.mideast and soc.culture.jewish forums in
|       Usenet.
|
|       Since this is a list based in Israel, we request that posters
|       exercise restraint and respect and not post overtly anti-Semitic,
|       racist, or rude and obscene postings.
|
|       - IL-ADS should be used to post want ads of a general nature that
|       pertain to users in Israel.  Advertisements should be of a
|       private nature - commercial advertisements are not allowed.
|
|       Examples of what is allowed to be posted: selling/buying a car,
|       selling/buying/renting an apartment, selling/buying a PC,
|       printer, fax, etc., providing piano/math/skydiving lessons,
|       etc.  All examples mentioned are to be of a private and
|       individual basis.
|
|       Examples of what is not allowed:  Posting ads for stores, price
|       lists of stores, special company sales.

 11. Q: What is the guidelines for use of ILAN?
     A: The following is a merger of the EARN Code of Conduct and
        some extra ILAN-specific rules:

        The  code of conduct has been established to remind users of
        the intended purposes of ILAN, in  addition  to  reinforcing
        the fact that ILAN is not a secure network and should not be
        relied  upon  for  transmission  of confidential or sensitive
        data.

        - Use of the network is specifically for academic and research
          purposes only.  Commercial use of the network is strictly
          forbidden.
        - Use of the network for political and religious activism is
          forbidden.
        - Software licensed to operate on a site may not be trans-
          mitted across the network  without  the  permission  of  the
          licenser.
        - Random mailings are forbidden.  Users are not to establish
          contact with random people over the network.
        - Chain  letters  are  forbidden.
        - Mail sent via the network is required to contain the name of the
          sender.
        - In relation to all files in the network - one must assume that
          they are private and not to be looked at, unless the owner
          specifically stated that the files were to be be used on a
          network-wide basis.
        - "Hacking/cracking" non-local as well as local sites is
          forbidden.  Attempting to penetrate a remote  site, either
          via "trojan horses", "viruses" or any other  hacking  method
          is strictly forbidden.  Transmitting network viruses for the
          purpose of disrupting the network is strictly forbidden.
        - Users must respect legal restrictions on data transfer.
          Specifically, for data originating in the USA and not in the
          public domain, refer to General License GTDA (which can be
          retrieved as LEGAL GTDA from LISTSERV@BITNIC) before sending
          to other countries.
        - Any and all misuse of the network that disrupts the normal
          flow of information on the network is forbidden.

 12. Q: Who is currently a member of ILAN?
        Bar-Ilan University - Ramat-Gan
        Ben Gurion University - Beer-Sheva
        Haifa University - Haifa
        Hebrew University - Jerusalem
        Technion - Haifa
        Tel Aviv University - Ramat Aviv
        Weizmann Institute of Science - Rehovot

        Albright Institute of Archaeological Research - Jerusalem
        Ashkelon Excavations - Ashkelon
        Bank of Israel Research Department - Jerusalem
        Bet Berl College - Kefar-Saba
        Bezalel Institute for Art and Design - Jerusalem
        British School of Archaeology - Jerusalem
        Center for Educational Technology  - Holon
        College for Administrative Studies - Tel-Aviv
        Development Study Center - Rehovot
        Hebrew Union College - Jerusalem
        IBM Science and Research Center - Haifa
        Israel Standards Institute - Tel-Aviv
        Israel Oceanographic & Limnological Research Ltd - Haifa
        Jerusalem College of Technology - Jerusalem
        Judea and Shomron College - Ariel
        Mandel Institute for the Advanced Study and Development
           of Jewish Education - Jerusalem
        Ministry of Agriculture/The Volcani Research Center - Bet Dagan
        Ministry of Agriculture/Hydrological Institute/
           Water Authority - Jerusalem
        Ministry of Energy/Geological Survey of Israel - Jerusalem
        Ministry of Industry & Trade/The National Physical
           Laboratory of Israel - Jerusalem
        Ministry of Science and Development/National Council for
            Research and Development - Jerusalem
        National Institute of Testing and Evaluation - Jerusalem
        National Union of Israel Students - Jerusalem
        Open University - Ramat Aviv
        Shenkar College for Textile and Fashion - Ramat Gan
        Soreq Nuclear Research Center - Yavne
        Union of Local Authorities in Israel - Finance and Research
            Department - Tel-Aviv
        United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation - Jerusalem
        Wingate Institute for Physical Education

        Note: Certain new institutions are in the process of connecting
        while others are already connected.  Many of the institutions
        listed above use the network as registered external users of
        one of the seven founding university members (see question #1).

 13. Q: Is there a document for novice TCPIP users to tell them everything
        they don't know?
     A: There is a document called RFC1206: "FYI on Questions and Answers
        - Answers to Commonly asked "New Internet User" Questions".
        You can retrieve it via anonymous FTP from vm.tau.ac.il
        (cd hank.400, get rfc1206.text).

 14. Q: What is Archie?
     A: The archie service is a collection of resource discovery
        tools that together provide an electronic directory
        service for locating information in an Internet
        environment.

        To access, either:
        - Mail a message with the word "help" to "archie@cs.huji.ac.il"

|       - Telnet to archie.cs.huji.ac.il and login as "archie"

 15. Q: Where can I keep up to date about Machba and ILAN?
     A: Machba publishes an "alon" (journal) every 3 months (in Hebrew) with
        detailed information about the network, including maps, graphs,
        articles as well as special discounted software and hardware
        for Machba users.  To subscribe to Alon Machba send mail to
        Pinchas Shlita, Computer Center, Tel-Aviv University, Ramat
        Aviv.

 16. Q: Why can't commercial companies connect to ILAN via the
        nearest academic institute for a fee?
     A: Machba, in August 1987 was informed by Bezek that the Machba
        network was an illegal network and that it would not receive any
        more telecommunication lines.  Hok HaBezek states that one is not
        allowed to create a third party network - meaning that "A" can't
        connect to "C" via "B".  In November 1988 Machba received a
        special operating license from Misrad Hatikshoret to operate a
        third party academic network.  This license lists who is allowed
        to connect to the network and it does not allow commercial
        companies to connect.  If Machba were to allow commercial
        companies to connect, it would have been in violation of its
        operating license and it would run the risk of losing the
        entire network.

        That is not to say that various organizations have not seen the
        folly of this policy which has no counterpart in the United States
        or Europe.  That is why the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the
        Ministry of Science and Technology as well as the Ministry of
        Communications are working on creating a nation-wide R&D network,
        similar in scope to the USA Internet.  The work is in progress to
        set up the legal and bureaucratic framework for such a network.
        In the interim, the Minister of Communications has signed a
        license modification for Machba (as of April 10, 1992) to expand
        the scope of the ILAN license to include "research, development,
        education and culture."  This is an "experimental" authorization
        valid until December 31, 1993 after which time the Ministry
        will determine whether to continue the expanded license.

        The details of who is allowed to connect, who to contact,
        how much to pay as well as all other procedural details for
|       connection are currently available.  For further details
        send a letter to the following address requesting the necessary
        information:   Avi Cohen
                       Computer Center
                       Tel Aviv University
                       Ramat Aviv
        Please remember to state the nature of your request.

 17. Q: What is Aleph and how does one use it from the network?
        ALEPH is a fully integrated catalog system, that is
        interconnected via DECNET.  Seven universities in Israel support
        Aleph, and constitute a network which is also called ALEPH.

        Each university runs its own catalog system but all catalogs are
        interconnected, and users can switch from one catalog system to
        another once they are inside any ALEPH catalog.  DECNET handles
        the switch transparently.

        You can access ALEPH via TELNET. To gain access to any of the
        systems, you must TELNET to any one of the following university
        library computers:

|       Bar-Ilan University            ALEPH.BIU.AC.IL       132.70.9.3
        Ben-Gurion University          BGULIB.BGU.AC.IL      132.72.20.3
        Haifa University               LIB.HAIFA.AC.IL       132.74.1.100
        Hebrew University              ALEPH.HUJI.AC.IL      128.139.4.207
        Technion                       LIB.TECHNION.AC.IL    132.68.1.20
        Tel Aviv University            TAUVAX.TAU.AC.IL      132.66.32.6
        Weizmann Institute of Science  WISLIB.WEIZMANN.AC.IL 132.76.64.14

        The username to use is ALEPH.  No password is required.
        For further details refer to the document "Internet Accessible
        Library Catalogs & Databases" available via anonymous FTP
        from vm.tau.ac.il (cd hank.400, get internet.library).

 18. Q: What is Trickle?  What is Listserv?
     A: For further details about Bitnet specific servers read the
        file BITNET USERHELP, which is available from LISTSERV@BITNIC.
        Send either an interactive message or mail to LISTSERV with
        the command "SEND BITNET USERHELP".

 19. Q: What RSCS connections exist from Israel to abroad?
     A: The current RSCS links to abroad from TAUNIVM are as follows:

        RSCS      Country      Provides connectivity for additional
        nodename               countries (2 letter country code)
        --------  ------------ ---------------------------------------
|       RICEVM1   USA          AR BH BR CA CL CO CR EC HK JP KR MX MY
|                              PA PE PR SA SG TW UY
|       AEARN     Austria      BG CS HU RO YU
        CEARN     Switzerland  IN
        DEARN     Germany      ESA (European Space Agency) nodes
        FRMOP11   France       BE CY EG ES GR PT TN TR
        HEARN     Holland      IE LU
        ICNUCEVM  Italy
        SEARN     Sweden       DK FI IS NO PL SU
        UKACRL    England

        For a complete list of ISO 2-letter country codes request the
        file COUNTRY ISOCODES from NETSERV@TAUNIVM via the command:
                     SEND COUNTRY ISOCODES
        sent to NETSERV@TAUNIVM either via an interactive Bitnet message
        or via e-mail.

        These RSCS connections are in actuality virtual circuits that
        "piggy-back" on top of the IP links listed in question #3.

 20. Q: What is INN and how do I use it?
     A: INN stands for Israeli National Node (INN) of EMBNet

         Contact:   Dr. Jaime Prilusky       lsprilus@weizmann
                    Mrs. Irit Orr            lsorr@weizmann

         INN hot-line:  08-342979      08-342470

         The Israeli National Node (INN) was created for the purpose
         of serving as a central depot for the EMBL DataBank in
         Israel, serving as a center for computerized analysis of
         sequences for all institutions of higher learning in the
         country.

         This central service has advantages over personal
         computer-based systems in that it makes available
         powerful hardware and software for characterization,
         sequence identification and graphics generation.

         As an added benefit, it allows immediate world-wide
         claiming of new scientific findings, via the direct computer
         link to EMBL in Heidelberg, Germany. The Israeli National
         Node (INN) of EMBNet was authorized by the Ministry  of
         Science and Technology in 1990. INN's host computer is
         WIDNA3 located at the Weizmann Institute of Science,
         Rehovot.

         The Israeli National Node (INN) is an official part of the
         international European infrastructure for information
         services in biotechnology, with headquarters in
         Heidelberg,  Germany and  regional nodes in 17 member
         countries.

         * INN has software for DNA and Protein sequence analysis.
         * INN's current available databases of DNA, RNA and
           protein sequences are updated daily.
         * ability to download information from INN databanks to
           the user's computer.
         * 24 hours a day availability.
         * free scientific support and advice.
         * free on-site training for research groups.
         * Bulletin Board Services for exchanging information on
           new databanks and programs.

         For a limited period, a Guest account is available. You can
         try this service by accessing the INN computer and
         entering GUEST both as a Username and as a Password.

         How to communicate with Widna3

         DecNet:            Set  Host  WIDNA3
         InterNet:          telnet  widna3.weizmann.ac.il
         Terminal Server:   C 132.76.64.30
         Modem:             (08) 461772, 461773, 466272, 466275,
                            469162, 472149, 342214, 342215

 21. Q: What is Usenet news and how does it work in Israel?
     A: Usenet news is a form of distributed electronic discussion.
        (note: it is NOT a specific network, although its name might
        imply so). The basic difference between Usenet (also known as
        Netnews) conferencing and LISTSERV-style conferencing is that
        in the former you do not need to subscribe to a certain group
        in order for it to get to your site; the information spreads
        around the world automatically, and can be accessed at your
|       convenience. Currently there are well over 1800 discussion groups
        (called "newsgroups") covering a wide area of themes and topics.
        In Israel, the full Usenet news feed is sent to Bar-Ilan
        University in compressed format, where it is decompressed, and
        distributed to various systems in Israel which have requested
        either a full or partial feed of the Usenet groups.  Contact your
        local computer center for details as to accessing Usenet news.

 22. Q: What is Gopher and how does it work in Israel?
     A: Gopher is one of the emerging "information search and retrieval"
        software systems available in the Internet.  It works via a
        client and server mechanism.  You must have a local Gopher
        client installed on your system before you can truly benefit
|       from Gopher.  There are two Gopher servers running in Israel:
|       a) the INN Biological Sequence server located at Weizmann
|          Institute of Science (sunbcd.weizmann.ac.il).
|       b) Bar Ilan University Campus Information System (vm.biu.ac.il).
|          This Gopher server supports both Hebrew and English menus
|          and documents.
|          The Bar Ilan system allows users from 3270 terminals to
|          access the system: telnet to vm.biu.ac.il and login as
|          'guest' - no password is required.

 23. Q: What is WWW and how does it work in Israel?
     A: WWW stands for World Wide Web and is yet another mechanism for
        arranging campus information in an orderly fashion.  There is
        currently one WWW server running in Israel at Hebrew University
        in Jerusalem:

        telnet vms.huji.ac.il

        and login with the user www, which requires no password.  The
        system is self explanatory and the menus are all presented in
        English and Hebrew.

|24.  Q: Is there a document of all Israeli based lists/discussion
|        groups?
|     A: Yes, there are currently 40 mail based lists located in Israel.
|        To retrieve the document describing these lists use anonymous
|        FTP to vm.tau.ac.il, cd hank.400 and retrieve the file
|        israel.lists

|25.  Q: What is the complete list of 3rd level domains in Israel that
|        are currently connected to ILAN?
|     A: biu.ac.il       - Bar Ilan University
|        bgu.ac.il       - Ben Gurion University
|        weizmann.ac.il  - Weizmann Institute of Science
|        tau.ac.il       - Tel Aviv University
|        huji.ac.il      - Hebrew University
|        technion.ac.il  - Technion
|        haifa.ac.il     - Haifa University
|        openu.ac.il     - Open University
|        jct.ac.il       - Jerusalem College of Technology
|        trendline.co.il - Trendline
|        iec.co.il       - Israel Electric Company
|        most.gov.il     - Ministry of Science and Technology
|        agri.gov.il     - Ministry of Agriculture
Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish