Re: [TUHS] OSI stack (Was: Posters)

[Kevin Bowling <kevin.bowling@kev009.com>]

On Wed, Feb 6, 2019 at 5:03 PM Noel Chiappa <jnc@mercury.lcs.mit.edu> wrote:
>
>     > From: Kevin Bowling
>
>     > Seems like a case of winners write the history books.
>
> Hey, I'm just trying to pass on my best understanding as I saw it at the time,
> and in retrospect. If you're not interested, I'm happy to stop.

There's nothing personal.  It just doesn't mesh with what I understand
from non-UNIX first party sources in some mainframe, telco, and
networking books.  If I'm wrong I'll gladly update my opinion.  I
wasn't there.  I try to incorporate other sources outside UNIX into my
readings on computer history.  Maybe I see connections where there
were none, or they really were just parallel universes that didn't
influence each other.

>     > There were corporate and public access networks long before TCP was set
>     > in stone as a dominant protocol.
>
> Sure, there were lots of alternatives (BITNET, HEPNET, SPAN, CSNET, along with
> commercial systems like TYMNET and TELENET, along with a host of others whose
> names now escape me). And that's just the US; Europe had an alphabet soup of its
> own.
>
> But _very_ early on (1 Jan 1983), DARPA made all their fundees (which included
> all the top CS departments across the US) convert to TCP/IP. (NCP was turned
> off on the ARPANET,and everyone was forced to switch over, or get off the
> network.) A couple of other things went for TCP/IP too (e.g. NSF's
> super-computer network). A Federal ad hoc inter-departmental committee called
> the FRICC moved others (e.g. NASA and DoE) in the direction of TCP/IP,
> too.
>
> That's what created the large user community that eventually drove all the
> others out of business. (Metcalfe's Law.)

Is it fair to say most of the non-gov systems were UNIX during the
next handful of years?  I am asking for clarification, not a leading
question.

Regards,
Kevin