Experts no longer know the full extent of Internet, its value, or who is using it for what. Texas has more than 60 distinct Internet sites, including Johnson Space Center, businesses, and educational institutions. Each may provide direct service to anyone associated with it, and may also propagate the network further into the community. The volume of network activity doubles every two months, while the number of participating universities doubles every 13 months, Almes said. Part of the good and the bad of this is that people are going to be using the network in ways I never hear about,'' he added.
Electronic mail is the great innovation of the network.
When a mailing list becomes popular enough, it can become a public newsgroup, readily available to everyone on the network. The popularity of individual newsgroups is not officially monitored, but one unofficial survey conducted recently by Digital Equipment Corp. indicated that alt.sex was the second most popular newsgroup, with an estimated audience of 100,000. Some of the activity on Internet probably violates state and federal obscenity laws, said Russel Turbeville, chief of the economic crimes- consumer fraud division of the Harris County district attorney's office. But as a practical matter, prosecution would be difficult or impossible. Clear Lake High School honors students will receive Internet access beginning this summer.