X-Mailer: NMail (1.1.0)
Newsgroups: rec.video.satellite
Date:         Sun, 30 Aug 1992 19:24:52 EDT
From:         Gary Bourgois <flash@LOPEZ.MARQUETTE.MI.US>
Subject:      Re: Data Service to Begin
X-To:         HOMESAT@VM1.NoDak.EDU

>I wonder if you have considered the volume of traffic involved in a complete
>USENET feed.  It sheds light on the need to go far beyond 300 baud and
>explains the constraints that result in the "high" prices required for any
>viable commercial approach.

Of course I have.  However, there is no reason that the net can not be
distributed for free within this context.  The 300 baud service is only
experimental, and is being done to create interest.

Actual service will be at least 9600 baud.  Probably faster.  All equipment
will be donated.  We are a non profit corporation already.  I do not want to
do it commercially and charge, I want to make the service available for free.
If I can secure free satellite time (I do not see this as a problem) then we
need only develop a standard, and then secure donations to set up the
originating system.

What needs to happen is a bunch of people get fired up and WANT this to
happen.  Then and only then will it happen.  I do not see the present
commercial venture being successful, quite frankly.  It has been tried
before.  USENET is not a commercial network.  There is probably grant funding
available, if someone wants to pursue writing a grant.  Indeed, *I* don't
need to be the one doing the work, administering the site (there are a lot of
good reasons for me NOT to be the site administrator, the greatest of which
is the fact that I live in an unpopulated wilderness, the nearest satellite
uplink is 500 miles away, and so is the nearest full net site.)  It would work
a lot better if someone in a metropolitan area would take this on.  The
problem is, people with good net access do not immediately realize the value
of a satellite delivered USENET service, as those of us here in the tall
timber *DO*.


>Check out the regularly posted article in news.answers entitile "How to
>become a USENET site".  Currently the traffic is about 400 MByte/month.
>It is rapidly growing.  Exponentially.

>This does not allow for any redundancy for error control and lost packets
>The commercial guys can assume dedicated equipment and have it easier here.

The long term goal is EXACTLY this, dedicated reception and transmission
systems.


>May not want to consider the legal problems that could result
>from broadcasting some of the bigger bandwidth consumers:

>  alt.sex.pictures.*

I would just as soon leave those off, plus (I am afraid) *.binaries.  At
least in the beginning.

I would probably not carry alt.* to begin with, as that particular heirarchy
by its nature is difficult to control (we have a system here that requires me
to create ALL groups, there is no auto creation, and we also have DYNAFEED,
so if I don't create the group, we get no traffic from it.

With all the traffic, there is no need for frivolous news groups that pop up
and go nowhere.


>Probably the best long term solution will involve a pc-based server with
>gigabytes of disk and an internet connection the uplink site.

Yes I agree with this,

>Most of the cheap garden variety high speed modems on the market today depend
>on feed back from the receiving modem to know how to compensate for the
>defects of the communications channel.  I don't know if they would
>work in a satellite broadcasting application.

It needs to be a special satellite data transmission and reception system.
NOT a landline modem.  There are such devices available designed ESPECIALLY
for satellite data transmission/reception.

>Keep up the good good work. We all appreciate your efforts.


I plan to.

The SDTS thing is only to get people playing, and maybe spark an interest in
the REAL goal.

I know that the hardware can be had, and can be had for free.  Indeed, ALL
the equipment at my present site has been donatated.  All the hardware for
the 300 baud transmissiona has been donated.

I am sure that there would be no problem finding folks to kick in hardware,
as well as free satellite time for a NON PROFIT venture.

For whatever work I do, I do not want or need any compensation.  If I lived
in a more cosmopolitan area, USENET would already be free on some bird or
another.  It is a lot harder and slower when you are in the tundra.

--
    /   Gary Bourgois, WB8EOH, The Birdwatcher: Marquette Michigan  USA   \
   ([-o ~ Tune FRIDAY NIGHT LIVE!  S3/21 6.2. Fridays from 9-midnight ~ o-])
    \  Now a snazzy new DOMAIN address!  flash@lopez.marquette.mi.us      /
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