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rfc:rfc1578

Network Working Group J. Sellers Request for Comments: 1578 NASA NREN/Sterling Software FYI: 22 February 1994 Category: Informational

                    FYI on Questions and Answers

Answers to Commonly Asked "Primary and Secondary School Internet User"

                             Questions

Status of this Memo

 This memo provides information for the Internet community.  This memo
 does not specify an Internet standard of any kind.  Distribution of
 this memo is unlimited.

Abstract

 The goal of this FYI RFC, produced by the Internet School Networking
 (ISN) group in the User Services Area of the Internet Engineering
 Task Force (IETF), is to document the questions most commonly asked
 about the Internet by those in the primary and secondary school
 community, and to provide pointers to sources which answer those
 questions.  It is directed at educators, school media specialists,
 and school administrators who are recently connected to the Internet,
 who are accessing the Internet via dial-up or another means which is
 not a direct connection, or who are considering an Internet
 connection as a resource for their schools.

Table of Contents

 1.  Introduction................................................... 2
 2.  Acknowledgments................................................ 2
 3.  Questions About the Internet in an Educational Setting......... 3
 4.  Questions About School Support for an Internet Connection...... 5
 5.  Questions About Implementation and Technical Options.......... 10
 6.  Questions About Security and Ethics............................12
 7.  Questions About Educational Collaboration, Projects, and
     Resources..................................................... 15
 8.  Suggested Reading............................................. 18
 9.  Resources and Contacts........................................ 21
 10. References.................................................... 35
 11. Security Considerations....................................... 35
 12. Author's Address.............................................. 35
     Appendix A:  Examples of Projects Using the Internet.......... 36
     Appendix B:  How To Get Documents Electronically.............. 43
     Appendix C:  Glossary of Terms Used in This Document.......... 47

Sellers [Page 1] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

1. Introduction

 The elementary and secondary school community of teachers, media
 specialists, administrators, and students is a growing population on
 the Internet.  In general, this group of users approaches the
 Internet with less experience in data network technology and fewer
 technical and user support resources than other Internet user groups.
 Many of their questions are related to the special needs of the
 community, while others are shared by any new user.  This document
 attempts first to define the most frequently asked questions related
 to the use of the Internet in pre-university education and then to
 provide not only answers but also pointers to further information.
 For new user questions of a more general nature, the reader should
 get FYI 4, "FYI on Questions and Answers:  Answers to Commonly Asked
 'New Internet User' Questions" [1].  For information on how to get
 this document, see Appendix B.
 It is important to remember that the Internet is a volatile and
 changing virtual environment.  I have tried to include only the most
 stable of network services when listing resources and groups for you
 to contact, which is a good solution to the problem of changing
 offerings on the Internet, but by no means a fool-proof one.  This
 constant change also means that there is a lot out there that you
 will discover as you begin to explore on your own.
 Future updates of this document will be produced as Internet School
 Networking working group members are made aware of new questions and
 of insufficient or inaccurate information in the document.  The RFC
 number of this document will change with each update, but the FYI
 number (22) will remain the same.

2. Acknowledgments

 The author wishes to thank for their help and contributions to this
 document the members of the Consortium for School Networking,
 Kidsphere, and Ednet electronic mailing lists, Ronald Elliott,
 Science and Technology Center; Klaus Fueller, Institute for Teacher
 Training of the German federal state of Hesia (HILF), and educator;
 Ellen Hoffman, Merit Network, Inc.; William Manning, Rice University;
 and Anthony Rutkowski, CNRI.  Special thanks go to Raymond Harder,
 Microcomputer Consultant, and Michael Newell, NASA Advanced Network
 Applications, who not only made contributions but also kept a steady
 stream of feedback flowing.  Extra special thanks go to the
 remarkable Ms. April Marine of the NASA Network Applications and
 Information Center for her contributions to the document, her expert
 advice, and her unparalleled support.

Sellers [Page 2] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

3. Questions About the Internet in an Educational Setting

 3.1  What is the Internet?
    The Internet is a collection of more than 10,000 interconnected
    computer networks around the world that make it possible to share
    information almost instantly.  The networks are owned by countless
    commercial, research, governmental, and educational organizations
    and individuals.  The Internet allows the more than 1.5 million
    computers and 10 millions users of the system to collaborate
    easily and quickly through messaging, discussion groups, and
    conferencing.  Users are able to discover and access people and
    information, distribute information, and experiment with new
    technologies and services.  The Internet has become a major global
    infrastructure for education, research, professional learning,
    public service, and business and is currently growing at the rate
    of about ten percent per month.
    The Internet Society serves as the international organization for
    Internet cooperation and coordination.  See Section 9, "Resources
    and Contacts".
    For a more complete basic introduction to the Internet, see FYI
    20, "What is the Internet?" [2].  Instructions on retrieving FYI
    documents can be found in Appendix B.
 3.2  What are the benefits of using the Internet in the classroom?
    The Internet expands classroom resources dramatically by making
    many resources from all over the world available to students,
    teachers, and media specialists, including original source
    materials.  It brings information, data, images, and even computer
    software into the classroom from places otherwise impossible to
    reach, and it does this almost instantly.  Access to these
    resources can yield individual and group projects, collaboration,
    curriculum materials, and idea sharing not found in schools
    without Internet access.
    Internet access also makes contact with people all over the world
    possible, bringing into the classroom experts in every content
    area, new and old friends, and colleagues in education.  With
    access to the Internet, your site can become a valuable source of
    information as well.  Consider the expertise in your school which
    could be shared with others around the world.
    The isolation inherent in the teaching profession is well-known
    among educators.  By having access to colleagues in other parts of
    the world, as well as to those who work outside of classrooms,

Sellers [Page 3] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    educators able to reach the Internet are not as isolated.
    A hands-on classroom tool, the use of networks can be a motivator
    for students in and of itself, and their use encourages the kind
    of independence and autonomy that many educators agree is
    important for students to achieve in their learning process.
    Because class, race, ability, and disability are removed as
    factors in communication while using the Internet, it is a natural
    tool for addressing  the needs of all students; exactly how this
    is done will vary from district to district as schools empower
    individual teachers and students.
    School reform, which is much on the minds of many educators today,
    can be supported by the use of the Internet as one of many
    educational tools.  See the answer to Question 4.1 for more
    specifics.
 3.3  How can educators incorporate this resource into their busy
      schedules?
    Most educators learn about the Internet during the time they use
    to learn about any new teaching tool or resource.  Realistically,
    of course, this means they "steal" time at lunch, on week-ends,
    and before and after school to explore resources and pursue
    relationships via the Internet.  Those who do so feel that it is
    well worth the rich rewards.  It's important that computers used
    to access the Internet are readily available and not so far away
    physically as to make using the resource impossible for educators
    and others.
    Many features of the Internet, such as the availability of online
    library catalogs and information articles, will actually end up
    saving considerable time once an instructor learns to use them,
    and there are new tools being developed all the time to make
    Internet resources more easily accessible.
    As the value of the Internet as an educational resource becomes
    more evident, school systems will need to look toward building the
    time to use it into educators' schedules.

Sellers [Page 4] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 3.4  I'm already using the National Geographic Kids Network (or PBS
      Learning Link or FrEdMail or ______).  Does this have anything
      to do with the Internet?  Is the Internet different from what
      I'm already using?
    Since the Internet is a network of many different networks, you
    may be using one of the networks which is connected to the
    Internet.  Some commercial programs for schools use networks and
    provide value-added service, such as curriculum software,
    technical support, project organization and coordination, etc.
    Some provide value-added service, but don't allow for all basic
    Internet services.  Networks like FrEdMail (Free Educational
    Electronic Mail), FidoNet, and K12Net are bulletin board and
    conferencing systems linked via the Internet which provide
    inexpensive access to some Internet services.  If you can use
    interactive computer access (Telnet) and electronic file transfer
    (FTP), as well as electronic mail, you are probably "on" the
    Internet.  If you have questions about the specific service you're
    currently using, ask its support personnel if you have Internet
    access, or call the InterNIC.  See Section 9, "Resources and
    Contacts" for how to reach the InterNIC, FrEdMail, FidoNet, and
    K12Net.

4. Questions About School Support for an Internet Connection

 4.1  Where does my school get the money for connecting to the
      Internet?
    Although school budgets are impossibly tight in most cases, the
    cost of an Internet connection can be squeezed from the budget
    when its value becomes apparent.  Costs for a low end connection
    can be quite reasonable.  (See the next question.)
    The challenge facing those advocating an Internet connection
    sometimes has less to do with the actual cost than it has with the
    difficulty of convincing administrators to spend money on an
    unfamiliar resource.
    In order to move the Internet connection closer to the top of your
    school's priority list, consider at least two possibilities.
    First, your school may be in the process of reform, as are many
    schools.  Because use of the Internet shifts focus away from a
    teacher-as-expert model and toward one of shared responsibility
    for learning, it can be a vital part of school reform.  Much of
    school reform attempts to move away from teacher isolation and
    toward teacher collaboration, away from learning in a school-only
    context and toward learning in a life context, away from an
    emphasis on knowing and toward an emphasis on learning, away from

Sellers [Page 5] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    a focus on content and toward a focus on concepts [3].  The
    Internet can play an integral part in helping to achieve these
    shifts.
    Second, to demonstrate the value of a connection, actual Internet
    access is more useful than words.  While this may sound like a
    chicken-and-egg situation (I have to have Internet access to get
    Internet access), some organizations will provide guest accounts
    on an Internet-connected computer for people in schools who are
    trying to convince others of the value of an Internet connection.
    Contact local colleges, universities, technology companies,
    service providers, community networks, and government agencies for
    both guest accounts and funding ideas.  For alternatives to your
    own school's budget or for supplements to it, look for funding in
    federal, state, and district budgets as well as from private
    grants.  Work with equipment vendors to provide the hardware
    needed at low or no cost to your school, and consider forming a
    School/Community Technology Committee, or a joint School
    District/School/Community Technology Committee.
    The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) has
    information on grants and funding.  Ask for the AskERIC InfoGuide
    called "Grants and Funding Sources".  Two network services, one
    maintained by the United States Department of Education's Office
    of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) and one maintained
    by the US National Science Foundation, also have information about
    grants and funding.  Grants can be a way for you to acquire the
    initial money to demonstrate the value of telecommunications in
    the classroom, and since these monies are often awarded on a
    short-term basis, should probably be looked at as temporary means
    of funding your activities.  For information on these
    organizations and their services, see Section 9, "Resources and
    Contacts".  (Note: The funding services mentioned are primarily US
    based.)
 4.2  How much does it cost to connect to the Internet, and what
      kind of equipment (hardware, software, etc.) does my school need
      in order to support an Internet connection?
    The cost of an Internet connection varies tremendously with the
    location of your site and the kind of connection that is
    appropriate to your needs.  In order to determine the cost to your
    school, you will need to answer a number of questions. For help in
    learning what the questions are and getting answers to them, begin
    asking at local colleges, universities, technology companies,
    government agencies, community networks (often called "freenets"),
    local electronic bulletin board systems (BBS), network access

Sellers [Page 6] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    providers, or technology consultants.
    To give you an idea of possible equipment needs, here are three
    sample scenarios, based on possible solutions found in the United
    States.  Keep in mind that these are very general examples and
    that there are many solutions at each level.  See also the answer
    to Question 5.5.
      Low-end: You could subscribe to some kind of Internet dial-up
      service.  This may be provided by a vendor at a cost, by a local
      university gratis, or as a part of a public access service like
      a community network.  You will need a computer which allows
      terminal emulation, terminal emulation software, and a modem
      which is compatible with your dial-up service.  The approximate
      cost, not including the PC or the cost of the phone call, is US
      $100 to US $800 plus a monthly fee of approximately US $30.
      Mid-range: You could subscribe to a dial-up service that
      provides Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP) or Point to Point
      Protocol (PPP), allowing your computer to effectively become a
      host on the Internet.  You will need a computer with SLIP or PPP
      software, telecommunications applications software (to allow you
      to use telnet and FTP - File Transfer Protocol), and a modem
      which is compatible with your dial-up service.  The approximate
      cost, not including the PC or the cost of the phone call, is US
      $100 to US $800 plus a monthly fee of approximately US $60.
      High-end: Your school or department could subscribe to a service
      that provides a full Internet connection to the school or
      department's local area network.  This allows all the computers
      on the local area network access to the Internet.  You will need
      a router and a connection to a network access provider's router.
      Typically the connection is a leased line with a CSU/DSU
      (Channel Service Unit/Data Service Unit).  A leased line is a
      permanent high speed telephone connection between two points;
      this allows you to have a high quality permanent Internet
      connection at all times.  A local area network, which may
      consist only of the router and a PC, Macintosh, or other
      computer system, is also needed, and your computer(s) will need
      some special software:  a TCP/IP (Transmission Control
      Protocol/Internet Protocol) stack, as well as TCP/IP based
      communications software such as Telnet and FTP.  The approximate
      cost, not including the computers, is US $2,000 to US $3,000
      plus a monthly fee of at least US $200.

Sellers [Page 7] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 4.3  What is required in terms of personnel to support an Internet
      connection?  (Will it require extra staff, training, more time
      of teachers and librarians?)
    Any plan for implementing technology in schools must consider
    staff development.  Training is often the most neglected aspect of
    a technology plan, and a lack of training can lead to failure of
    the plan.  In the case of the Internet, all users will need some
    kind of training, whether they are teachers, librarians, students,
    administrators, or people fulfilling other roles in the school.
    The train-the-trainer model, in which a group of people are
    trained in a subject or tool and each individual in turn trains
    other groups, is a good model for Internet training.  A small
    group of motivated teachers can be provided with training and can
    then educate their colleagues.  One advantage is that the initial
    group is able to target the specific needs of the other teachers
    in the school.
    Depending on the hardware involved, there may be a need for
    technical support.  Finding this kind of support, which schools
    will certainly need because it is not usually in place, may be
    tricky.  Some districts are beginning to provide it at the
    district level.  Some schools are able to use volunteers from
    business, industry, or government agencies.  Much of this type of
    support can be done over the network itself, which makes it
    possible for someone located off-site to maintain the equipment
    with only occasional trips to the school.  Additionally, vendors
    often provide some support, perhaps a help desk for basic
    questions.
 4.4  How do I convince the people who do the purchasing in our school
      system to spend money on this?
    Most people become convinced with exposure.  One excited
    individual in the school who is able to show proof of concept by
    starting a pilot program can be the catalyst for a school or an
    entire district.  If you can get an Internet account (as suggested
    above) and use it for instruction in your classroom, you can make
    presentations at faculty, school/community, and school board
    meetings.
    The National Center for Education Statistics in the Office of
    Educational Research and Improvement at the United States
    Department of Education has released a 17-minute video targeted at
    school administrators entitled "Experience the Power: Network
    Technology for Education".  It uses interview clips of students,
    teachers, and policy makers in the United States to educate about

Sellers [Page 8] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    what the Internet is and to encourage support for the use of
    telecommunications in primary and secondary schools.  The NASA
    NREN (US National Aeronautics and Space Administration National
    Research and Education Network) K-12 Initiative has produced an
    11-minute video describing the benefits to schools in using the
    Internet.  The video is entitled, "Global Quest: The Internet in
    the Classroom", and it tells the story through interview clips
    with students and teachers who have experienced the power of
    computer networking.  For further information on the two videos,
    see "National Center for Education Statistics", and "NASA Central
    Operation of Resources for Educators" under "Organizations" in
    Section 9, "Resources and Contacts".
 4.5  Where do I go for technical support and training?
    Much technical support and training can be found by using the
    Internet itself.  You can send questions to people in the know and
    join discussion lists and news groups that discuss and answer
    questions about support and training.  One such list is Tipsheet,
    the Computer Help and Tip Exchange, the purpose of which is to
    provide a supportive setting where people can ask questions or
    discuss products.  Other lists are the education-related lists
    mentioned in Question 7.2.  All of these are listed in Section 9,
    "Resources and Contacts".
    Network News, or Usenet News, is a world-wide bulletin board
    system with discussion groups on various topics, including
    computer science, general science, social and cultural themes,
    recreational interests, etc.  By sending questions to an
    appropriate news group you can receive answers from people
    experienced with your particular problem.  Specific news groups to
    look for are those beginning with "comp", for "computer", and
    followed by the type of operating system, hardware, or software
    you have a question about.  For example, comp.os.unix or
    comp.os.msdos.apps.  To understand the culture and etiquette of
    Usenet News, read the group news.announce.newusers.
    Your local community may also have resources that you can tap.
    These are again colleges and universities, businesses, computer
    clubs and user groups, technology consultants, and government
    agencies.
    Your network access provider may offer training and support for
    technical issues, and other groups also offer formal classes and
    seminars.  For those schools who have designated technical people,
    they are good candidates for classes and seminars.
    There are some documents for further reading and exploration that

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    you may want to peruse.  See Section 8, "Suggested Reading".
    There are books on almost every specific subject in the computing
    world that may answer your questions.  For new books, check your
    local library, bookstore, or booksellers' catalogs.

5. Questions About Implementation and Technical Options

 5.1  How do I learn about options for getting my school connected?
    In the United States, there are a number of state-wide educational
    networks, most of them with access to the Internet.  To find out
    if there is a state education network in your area which gives
    accounts to educators and/or students, contact the Consortium for
    School Networking.  The InterNIC has a list of regional and
    national network providers.  Both the Consortium for School
    Networking and the InterNIC are listed in Section 9, "Resources
    and Contacts".
    The global regional NICs such as the RIPE NCC in Europe can also
    provide a list of service providers.  The APNIC in the Pacific Rim
    will have a similar list in the near future.
    You can sometimes locate a person enthusiastic about the idea of
    using networks in schools and willing to help you who works as an
    independent consultant, in a local college or university, in a
    technology company, for a network access provider, at a community
    network, or in a government agency.
    There are a number of books about the Internet and how to get
    connected to it.  A few are listed in Section 8, "Suggested
    Reading", and more are being published every month.  Check
    libraries, bookstores, and booksellers' catalogs.
 5.2  How many of our computers should we put on the Internet?
    You will probably want to make Internet *access* possible for as
    many of your school's computers as possible.  If you are using a
    dial-up service, you may want a number of shared accounts
    throughout the school.  If your school has a Local Area Network
    (LAN) with several computers on it, one dedicated Internet
    connection should be able to serve the whole school.
    If you are going to connect a lot of computers to the network, you
    will need to make sure your line speed is adequate.  Most dial-up
    systems available today support speeds up to 14.4 Kbs (kilobits
    per second), which is adequate for no more than a couple of
    network users, depending upon the network utilities (FTP, etc.)
    they are using.  If you are planning to connect a large number of

Sellers [Page 10] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    users, you should probably consider a dedicated line of 56 Kbs or
    higher.
 5.3  Should we set up a telecommunications lab or put networked
      computers in each classroom?
    A computer lab is an easier maintenance set-up for the person in
    charge of keeping the equipment running and allows each individual
    (or pair) in an entire class to be using a computer at the same
    time; a computer located in the classroom is more convenient for
    both the teacher and the class.  If you choose the lab option, you
    will probably want to get a commitment from specific teachers or
    media specialists to use the lab in the course of their teaching.
    You might also consider the other labs located throughout your
    school.  For example, if you have a science or language lab, it
    may be the best place for your school to begin to use the
    Internet.  And finally, remember that the library is a natural
    place for people to access network resources!
    Networking all computers campus-wide can be expensive.  You will
    need to consider the options--dial-up access, a dedicated line, or
    some other possibility--and weigh them against your school's needs
    and priorities.  You may want to investigate having one lab, the
    library, and a few classrooms with modem access, assuming phone
    lines are available.  As use of the Internet catches on, it will
    be more effective to create a campus-wide local area network that
    is routed to the Internet through a dedicated line than to keep
    adding modems in classrooms.  Or you may want to consider the
    other options discussed in question 5.5 below.
 5.4  Can people get on the Internet from home?
    This depends on your network access provider.  It is certainly a
    possibility and is probably desirable for the educators at your
    school if they happen to have the necessary equipment at home.
    You will need to discuss whether you want to make this option
    available to students even if it is possible technically.  This is
    best discussed with the community your school serves in a public
    forum such as a school/community meeting.  At issue is the shared
    responsibility of educators and parents to monitor student
    Internet use.  (See also Question 6.2.)
 5.5  What are some of the options for using Internet services without
      paying for a full, dedicated-line Internet connection?
    It is possible to create a local, store-and-forward network using
    various implementations of the Unix to Unix Copy (UUCP) software
    suite, available as public domain (free) or shareware (small fee

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    which is often optional) software, which can run on many different
    platforms including Amiga, IBM, and Macintosh.  The connections
    are via dial-up phone lines using local phone numbers.  Usenet
    News and email are "stored" on a computer until the time appointed
    for that computer to contact the next one along the path to the
    final destination, at which time it is "forwarded" along its way.
    Most computers are set up to process outgoing requests at least
    every 30 minutes.  With this type of system you will have access
    to as many Usenet News groups as your site agrees to carry, as
    well as email, which includes access to mailing lists and
    listservs such as those listed in Section 9, "Resources and
    Contacts".  Many file servers also offer file transfer and other
    services via email.
    There are a couple of important advantages to such a system.
    First, it is much more affordable since such networks provide more
    efficient use of telephone lines, making a connection only while
    data is actually being transferred.  Second, it allows for
    filtering, which gives a school some control over what kind of
    information is available to its students.
    The disadvantage to this type of Internet access is that you may
    be limited regarding the range of Internet applications you can
    use.
    FrEdMail, FidoNet, and K12Net are store-and-forward systems.
    FidoNet, for example, is a network of amateurs and hobbyists which
    operates on personal computers and is publicly accessible by
    anyone with a microcomputer and a modem.  Contact information for
    all three organizations can be found in Section 9, "Resources and
    Contacts".

6. Questions About Security and Ethics

 6.1  Who should have access in the school, the teachers or the
      students?
    Clearly the answer is that all educators, including administrators
    and media specialists or librarians, AND students should have
    access to the Internet.  There's no reason why support staff
    should not also have access.  In elementary schools, access for
    students may be more supervised than in the upper grades.

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 6.2  I've heard that there are files on the Internet that parents
      would not like their children to get.  How can students be
      kept from accessing this objectionable material?
    If your school has a direct Internet connection, and often even if
    it doesn't, it is not possible to use a technical solution to
    prevent students from accessing objectionable material.  Everyone
    on the network, including students, is able to download files from
    public electronic repositories, some of which contain materials
    that just about anyone would consider objectionable for school-age
    children.  The store-and-forward scenario described in Question
    5.5 is one solution to filtering the information to which students
    have access, but if students are allowed to use email then it is
    possible for someone to send them objectionable material.
    For this reason, it is important that schools develop clear
    policies to guide students' use of the Internet and establish
    rules, and consequences for breaking them, that govern behavior on
    the Internet.  Additionally, schools should consider integrating
    issues around technology and ethics into the curriculum [4].
    Another possibility is to control the times and opportunities that
    students have to access the Internet, and only allow access under
    supervision.  This is a less desirable option than teaching the
    ethics of Internet access as a matter of course, but may be used
    in combination with other methods to ensure the integrity of the
    school, its students, and its educators.
    In any case, schools need to exercise reasonable oversight while
    realizing that it is almost impossible to absolutely guarantee
    that students will not be able to access objectionable material.
 6.3  How do we keep our own and other people's computers safe from
      student "hackers"?
    In the language of computer folks, a "hacker" is someone who is
    excellent at understanding and manipulating computer systems. A
    "cracker" is someone who maliciously and/or illegally enters or
    attempts to enter someone else's computer system.
    Computer security is unquestionably important, both in maintaining
    the security of the school's computers and in ensuring the proper
    behavior of the school's students (and others who use the
    network).  In this area, not only school policy, but also state
    and national laws may apply.  Two sources of information which you
    can read to help you sort through security issues are:

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      "Site Security Handbook" (FYI 8)
      "Ethical Uses of Information Technologies in Education"
      (Sivin & Bialo)
    The full references for these documents can be found in Section 8,
    "Suggested Reading".  The pamphlet "Ethical Uses of Information
    Technologies in Education" is more applicable to the laws of the
    United States than to those of other countries, but several of the
    ideas are shared in various cultures.
 6.4  How do we keep viruses from attacking all our computers if we
      get connected to the Internet?
    If you use the Internet to exchange data (such as text or
    pictures), virus infection is generally not a problem.  The real
    concern is when you download software programs and run them on
    your own computer.  Any program you download over the network and
    run could have a virus.  For that matter, any program, whether on
    tape or a disk, even commercial software still in its original
    packaging, might possibly have a virus.  For this reason, all
    computers should have virus protection software running on them.
    Virus checking software is available free over the Internet via
    Anonymous FTP from the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT),
    which is run by the US National Institute for Standards and
    Technology (NIST).  The Anonymous FTP host computer is
    ftp.cert.org.  (For information on using Anonymous FTP, see
    Appendix B.)  Your hardware or software vendor, your network
    access provider, your technical support resources, or your
    colleagues on network mailing lists should be able to provide more
    specific information applicable to your site.
    To help reduce the risk of downloading a virus with your program,
    try to use trusted sources.  Ask someone you know or send the
    question to a mailing list or news group to find the most reliable
    sites for software access.
 6.5  What are the rules for using the Internet?
    When your Internet connection is established, your access provider
    should acquaint you with their Acceptable Use Policy (AUP).  This
    policy explains the acceptable and non-acceptable uses for your
    connection.  For example, it is in all cases unacceptable to use
    the network for illegal purposes.  It may, in some cases, be
    unacceptable to use the network for commercial purposes.  If such
    a policy is not mentioned, ask for it.  All users are expected to
    know what the acceptable and unacceptable uses of their network

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    are.  Remember that it is essential to establish a school-wide
    policy in addition to the provider's AUP.

7. Questions About Educational Collaboration, Projects, and Resources

 7.1  How can I find specific projects using the Internet that are
      already developed?
    There are a several resources on the Internet that are directed
    specifically at the primary and secondary school communities, and
    the number is growing.  The InterNIC gopher server has a section
    on K-12 (Kindergarten through 12th grade) Education, the
    Consortium for School Networking maintains a gopher server, and
    NASA's Spacelink is directed at primary and secondary school
    educators.  NYSERNet's Empire Internet Schoolhouse is an extension
    of its Bridging the Gap program.  For access to these and others,
    see Section 9, "Resources and Contacts".
    Many people on electronic mailing lists such as Ednet, Kidsphere,
    and the Consortium for School Networking Discussion List
    (cosndisc) post their projects and ask for partners and
    collaborators.  The K12 hierarchy of Usenet News has several
    groups where educators post these invitations as well.  For
    subscription to these and other electronic lists and for names of
    news groups, see Section 9, "Resources and Contacts".  For news
    groups and mailing lists of special interest to educators, see the
    "Ednet Guide to Usenet Newsgroups" and "An Educator's Guide to E-
    Mail Lists", both of which are listed in Section 8, "Suggested
    Reading".
    As you explore the Internet, there are some tools that will help
    you find projects that are already developed.  A good overview of
    many of these resource discovery tools is the "Guide to Network
    Resource Tools" written by the European Academic Research Networks
    (EARN) Association.  It explains the basics of tools such as
    Gopher, Veronica, WAIS, Archie, and the World Wide Web, as well as
    others, and provides pointers for finding out more about these
    useful tools.  It is listed in Section 8, "Suggested Reading".
 7.2  Where do I go to find colleagues who support networking and
      schools willing to participate in projects?
    The electronic mailing lists and Usenet News groups in Section 9,
    "Resources and Contacts" are rich with people who want to
    collaborate on projects involving use of the Internet.
    There are also a number of conferences you may want to look in to.
    The National Education Computing Conference (NECC) is held

Sellers [Page 15] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    annually, as is Tel-Ed, a conference sponsored by the
    International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).  ISTE
    maintains an online server which has a calendar of conferences all
    over the world in telecommunications for education.  The INET
    conference is the annual conference for the Internet Society.  See
    Section 9, "Resources and Contacts", for contact information for
    these organizations and for information on access to ISTE's online
    server.
 7.3  What are some examples of how the Internet is being used in
      classrooms now?
    Projects which use the Internet sometimes request sites from all
    over the world to contribute data from the local area then compile
    that data for use by all.  Weather patterns, pollutants in water
    or air, and Monarch butterfly migration are some of the data that
    has been collected over the Internet.  In Appendix A you will find
    several examples from the Kidsphere electronic mailing list, each
    from a different content area and representing different ways of
    using the Internet.
    There are a number of specific projects you may find interesting.
    KIDS-94 (and subsequent years), managed by the non-profit KIDLINK
    Society, is one.  It currently includes ten discussion lists and
    services, some of them only for people who are ten through fifteen
    years old.  Another place to look is Academy One of the National
    Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN), which usually has between 5
    and 10 projects running at a time.  The International Education
    and Research Network (I*EARN), a project of the non-profit Copen
    Family Fund, facilitates telecommunications in schools around the
    world.  Chatback Trust, initiated to provide email for schools in
    the United Kingdom and around the world with students who have
    mental or physical difficulty with communicating, and Chatback
    International, directed at any school on the Internet, maintain a
    network server that you may want to investigate.  The European
    Schools Project involves approximately 200 schools in 20 countries
    and has as its goal building a support system for secondary school
    educators.  For contact information on these groups and server
    access, refer to Section 9, "Resources and Contacts".
 7.4  Is there a manual that lists sites on the Internet particularly
      useful for class exploration?
    There are a number of resource guides, and so far only a couple
    are directed specifically at an education audience.  "An
    Incomplete Guide to the Internet and Other Telecommunications
    Opportunities Especially for Teachers and Students K-12" is
    compiled by the NCSA Education Group and is available online.  The

Sellers [Page 16] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    "Internet Resource Directory for Educators, Version 2" is also
    available online.  It was prepared by a team of 46 teachers in
    Nebraska and Texas who were enrolled in telecomputing courses at
    two universities in 1992 and 1993.  Ednet's "Educator's Guide to
    Email Lists" is available electronically, as is the "Ednet Guide
    to Usenet News Groups".  ERIC offers several documents relating to
    telecommunications and education, including the ERIC Digest
    "Internet Basics", the ERIC Review "K-12 Networking",
    "Instructional Development for Distance Education", and
    "Strategies for Teaching at a Distance".  Complete bibliographic
    information for these documents is listed in Section 8, "Suggested
    Reading".  For help in retrieving the documents electronically,
    see Appendix B.
    There are also printed guides to the Internet appearing along with
    the new books on the Internet.  The problem with paper resource
    guides is that the Internet is a changing environment, so they
    become outdated quickly.  Check libraries, bookstores, and
    booksellers' catalogs for these guides.
    One answer to the problem of printed Internet guides is the
    newsletter.  NetTEACH NEWS is a newsletter specifically for
    primary and secondary school educators interested in networking.
    It contains information on new services on the Internet that are
    of interest to educators, projects for collaboration, conferences,
    new books and publications, and includes "The Instruction Corner",
    which gives practical tutorials on using network tools and
    services.  NetTEACH NEWS is published ten times a year, and is
    available both hardcopy and via email.  Subscription information
    can be found in Section 9, "Resources and Contacts".
 7.5  How can I add my own contributions to the Internet?
    The network server operated by the Consortium for School
    Networking exists expressly for the sharing of ideas by the
    elementary and secondary school community.  Educators are
    encouraged to submit projects, lesson plans, and ideas.  A gopher
    server maintained by PSGnet and RAINet also accepts educator
    submissions for addition to the many sections of its menu tree
    devoted to elementary and secondary school interests.  See Section
    9, "Resources and Contacts" for information on reaching CoSN or
    submitting materials, and for access to the server maintained by
    PSGnet and RAINet.  It is important to remember that anything you
    create should be updated for others as you make changes yourself
    in the course of your learning by experience.
    The electronic mail lists and news groups mentioned are also
    places to share your knowledge and yourself as a resource, and as

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    you gain experience you may find you have the knowledge to put up
    an electronic server at your own site.  A group of schools in
    Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States shares one such
    server, and there you could recently find and download to your own
    computer photographs and notes from an exhibit on the architecture
    of one of the elementary schools.

8. Suggested Reading

    Those items marked with an asterisk (*) are available free online.
    For information on retrieving documents electronically, see
    Appendix B.
 Dearn, D.  The Internet Guide for New Users.
            Washington, DC:  McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1994.
  • "Ednet Guide to Usenet Newsgroups"

online:

      nic.umass.edu
      pub/ednet/edusenet.gde
  • "Educator's Guide to E-Mail Lists"

online:

      nic.umass.edu
      pub/ednet/educatrs.lst
 Fraase, M.  The Mac Internet Tour Guide.  Chapel Hill, NC:
             Ventana Press, 1993.
  • FYI 4 "FYI on Questions and Answers: Answers to Commonly asked "New

Internet User" Questions", Malkin, G.S. and A. Marine.

         (fyi4.txt or rfc1325.txt)
  • FYI 5 "Choosing a Name for Your Computer", Libes, D.

(fyi5.txt or rfc1178.txt)

  • FYI 8 "Site Security Handbook", Holbrook, J.P. and J.K.

Reynolds. (fyi8.txt or rfc1244.txt)

  • FYI 16 "Connecting to the Internet: What Connecting Institutions

Should Anticipate", ACM SIGUCCS Networking Task Force.

         (fyi16.txt or rfc1359.txt)
  • FYI 18 "Internet Users' Glossary", LaQuey Parker, T. and G. Malkin.

(fyi18.txt or rfc1392.txt)

  • FYI 19 "Introducing the Internet–A Short Bibliography of

Introductory Internetworking Reading for the Network Novice",

Sellers [Page 18] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

          Hoffman, E. and L. Jackson.  (fyi19.txt or rfc1463.txt)
  • FYI 20, "What is the Internet?" Krol, E. and E. Hoffman.

(fyi20.txt or rfc1462.txt)

     The FYI series is online in the following locations.  Choose
     the site nearest you from which to download the files:
     United States
     ds.internic.net (198.49.45.10)
     fyi/fyi##.txt
     Pacific Rim
     munnari.oz.au (128.250.1.21)
     fyi/fyi##.txt
     Europe
     nic.nordu.net (192.36.148.17)
     fyi/fyi##.txt
  • "Guide to Network Resource Tools", EARN Association. May 1993.

64 pp.

     online:
     naic.nasa.gov
     files/general_info/earn-resource-tool-guide.ps and
     earn-resource-tool-guide.txt
     ftp.earn.net
     pub/doc/resource-tool-guide.ps and
     resource-tool-guide.txt
     ns.ripe.net
     earn/earn-resource-tool-guide.ps and
     earn-resource-tool-guide.txt
     ds.internic.net
     pub/internet-doc/EARN.nettools.ps and
     EARN.nettools.txt
     via email:
     send a message to...
     ...LISTSERV@EARNCC.BITNET
     leave the subject blank and in the first line of the body,
     enter...
     ...GET NETTOOLS TXT
     for the plain ASCII text format, or
     ...GET NETTOOLS PS
     for the PostScript version

Sellers [Page 19] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

  • "Incomplete Guide to the Internet and Other Telecommunications

Opportunities Especially for Teachers and Students K-12", NCSA

     Education Group.  July, 1993.
     online:
     ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu
     Education/Education_Resources/Incomplete_Guide
     To order a hardcopy, contact:
     Valerie Sheehan
     NCSA Education Group
     605 E. Springfield Ave.
     Champaign, IL 61820
     vsheehan@ncsa.uiuc.edu
     or:
     Lisa Bievenue
     NCSA Education Group
     605 E. Springfield Ave.
     Champaign, IL 61820
     bievenue@ncsa.uiuc.edu
  • Internet Resource Directory for Educators

online:

     tcet.unt.edu
     pub/telecomputing-info/IRD/IRD-telnet-sites.txt,
     IRD-ftp-archives.txt, IRD-listservs.txt, and
     IRD-infusion-ideas.txt
 Kehoe, Brendan.  Zen and the Art of the Internet: A Beginner's Guide.
        Englewood Cliffs, NJ:  Prentice-Hall, 1992.
 Krol, E.  The Whole Internet User's Guide & Catalog.  Sebastopol,
        CA:  O'Reilly & Associates, Inc., 1992.
 LaQuey, T.  The Internet Companion: A Beginner's Guide to Global
        Networking. Reading, MA:  Addison-Wesley Publishing Company,
        1992.
 Marine, A., S. Kirkpatrick, V. Neou, and C. Ward.  Internet:
        Getting Started.  Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,
        1993.
 Sivin, J.P. and Bialo, E.R.  "Ethical Uses of Information
        Technologies in Education",  1992.  Washington, DC: U.S.
        Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs,
        National Institute of Justice.

Sellers [Page 20] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

        To order, call 800-851-3420 from within the United
        States or 301-251-5500 from outside of the United States.
        Or write to:
        U.S. Department of Justice
        Office of Justice Programs
        National Institute of Justice
        Washington, DC  20531
  • RFC 1480 "The US Domain", Cooper, A. and J. Postel. June 1993.

(rfc1480.txt)

        This document will also be useful to people not in the United
        States.  See the sites listed under the FYI documents for the
        location nearest you from which to download the file.

9. Resources and Contacts

  1. ———–

CONFERENCES:

  1. ———–
 NECC and Tel-Ed
    International Society for Technology in Education
    1787 Agate Street
    Eugene, Oregon  97403-1923
    USA
    phone:  503-346-4414 or 1-800-336-5191
    fax:    503-346-5890
    email:  iste@oregon.uoregon.edu
            (Compuserve:  70014,2117)
            (AppleLink:  ISTE)
    Electronic access to a calendar of conferences all over the world
    and other information is available on the ISTE server.  See
    "Network Servers" in this section.
 INET
    Internet Society
    1895 Preston White Drive
    Suite 100
    Reston, Virginia  22091
    USA
    Phone:  703-648-9888
    Fax:    703-620-0913
    Email:  isoc@isoc.org

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  1. ———————

ELECTRONIC MAIL LISTS:

  1. ———————
 Cosndisc (Consortium for School Networking Discussion List)
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    listproc@yukon.cren.org
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe cosndisc YourFirstName YourLastName
    To post, send a message to...
    cosndisc@yukon.cren.org
 Ednet
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    listserv@nic.umass.edu
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe ednet YourFirstName YourLastName
    To post, send a message to...
    ednet@nic.umass.edu
 Kidsphere
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    kidsphere-request@vms.cis.pitt.edu
    Type any message asking to be added to the list.
    To post, send a message to...
    kidsphere@vms.cis.pitt.edu
 KIDS-95/KIDLINK
    To learn about KIDLINK projects, subscribe to the news service by
    sending a message to...
    listserv@vm1.nodak.edu
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe KIDLINK YourFirstName YourLastName
    To receive a file of general information on KIDLINK, send email to
    the same listserv address, leave the Subject field blank, and in
    the first line of the body of the message enter...
    get kidlink general

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 K12admin (A list for K-12 educators interested in educational
 administration)
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    listserv@suvm.syr.edu
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe k12admin YourFirstName YourLastName
    To post, send a message to...
    k12admin@suvm.syr.edu
 LM_NET (A list for school library media specialists worldwide)
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    listserv@suvm.syr.edu
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe LM_NET YourFirstName YourLastName
    To post, send a message to...
    LM_NET@suvm.syr.edu
 SIGTEL-L (A list for the Special Interest Group for
 Telecommunications, a service of the International Society for
 Technology in Education)
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    SIGTEL-L@unmvma.unm.edu
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe SIGTEL-L YourFirstName YourLastName
    To post, send a message to...
    SIGTEL-L@unmvma.unm.edu
 Tipsheet (Computer Help and Tip Exchange)
    To subscribe, send a message to...
    listserv@wsuvm1.csc.wsu.edu
    Leave the Subject field blank, and in the first line of the body of
    the message enter...
    subscribe tipsheet YourFirstName YourLastName

Sellers [Page 23] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

  1. —————

NETWORK SERVERS:

  1. —————
 Chatback Trust and Chatback International network server
    via telnet...
      telnet rdz.stjohns.edu
      login: student
      (Follow login instructions on screen.)
    via gopher...
      sjuvm.stjohns.edu (port 70)
      Choose "Rehabilitation Resource Center" from first menu.
      Choose "SJU Unibase Bulletin Board and Conference System" from
      menu which then comes up.
 Consortium for School Networking gopher server
    via gopher...
      cosn.org (port 70)
    via telnet...
      telnet cosn.org
      login: gopher
      (no password)
 Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) Digests Archives are
 available
    via telnet...
      telnet bbs.oit.unc.edu
      login: launch
      (Follow directions on screen for registration.  At the main menu,
      choose number 4, "Topical Document Search (WAIS)", and move to
      eric-digests.  For help in WAIS, type a question mark.)
    via FTP...
      ftp ericir.syr.edu
      login: anonymous
      password:  your_email_address
      cd pub
    via email...
      mail askeric@ericir.syr.edu
      (In your message ask for the topic you're interested in.  A human
      will answer you.)

Sellers [Page 24] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    via gopher...
      ericir.syr.edu (port 70)
 Empire Internet Schoolhouse
    via gopher...
      nysernet.org (port 70)
    via telnet...
      telnet nysernet.org
      login: empire
      (no password)
 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) gopher server
    via gopher...
      gopher.uoregon.edu (port 70)
    via telnet...
      telnet gopher.uoregon.edu
      login: gopher
      (no password)
    Once connected via either of these two methods, use the menu item
    "Search Titles in This Gopher Server" and enter ISTE when asked
    what to search for.
 InterNIC gopher server
    via gopher...
      is.internic.net (port 70)
    via telnet...
      telnet is.internic.net
      login: gopher
      (no password)
 KIDS Gopher, a KIDLINK service
    via gopher...
      kids.duq.edu (port 70)
    via telnet...
      telnet kids.duq.edu
      login: gopher
      (no password)

Sellers [Page 25] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 NASA Spacelink
    via telnet...
      telnet spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov
      login: newuser
      password: newuser
      (Follow registration instructions on screen.)
    To find information on the NASA Teacher Resource Center Network or
    for a NASA Select television schedule, enter "g" for GO TO, then
    enter either "TRC" or "NASA Select".
    via FTP...
      ftp spacelink.msfc.nasa.gov
 National Science Foundation's (United States) Science and Technology
 Information System (STIS)
     via telnet...
       telnet stis.nsf.gov
       login:  public
       Follow instructions on screen.
     via gopher...
     stis.nsf.gov (port 70)
 Office of Educational Research and Improvement (US Department of
 Education) gopher server
     via gopher...
       gopher.ed.gov (port 70)
 The OERI gopher server contains educational research and statistics,
 as well as information about the United States Department of Education
 and its programs.
 PSGnet and RAINet gopher server
    via telnet...
      telnet gopher.psg.com
      login:  gopher
      (no password)
    via gopher...
      gopher.psg.com (port 70)

Sellers [Page 26] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

  1. ———–

NEWS GROUPS:

  1. ———–
 alt.education.distance
 alt.kids-talk
 comp.security.announce
 k12.chat.elementary
 k12.chat.junior
 k12.chat.senior
 k12.chat.teacher
 k12.ed.art
 k12.ed.business
 k12.ed.comp.literacy
 k12.ed.health-pe
 k12.ed.life-skills
 k12.ed.math
 k12.ed.music
 k12.ed.science
 k12.ed.soc-studies
 k12.ed.special
 k12.ed.tag
 k12.ed.tech
 k12.edu.life-skills (especially for school counselors)
 k12.euro.teachers (in Europe)
 k12.lang.art
 k12.lang.deutsch-eng
 k12.lang.esp-eng
 k12.lang.francais
 k12.lang.russian
 k12.library
 k12.sys.projects
 misc.education
 misc.education.language.english
 misc.kids
 misc.kids.computer
 news.announce.newusers
 pubnet.nixpub (where a list of open access Unix sites is often posted,
   for those looking for access to Usenet News and email only)

Sellers [Page 27] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

  1. ———-

NEWSLETTER:

  1. ———-
 NetTEACH NEWS
 Published monthly from August to March and bi-monthly April/May and
 June/July, NetTEACH NEWS is written for both the novice and the
 experienced networking teacher.
 Annual hardcopy subscription costs are:
 US $22.00  for individuals in the US
 US $25.00  for individuals in Canada
 US $30.00  for individuals outside the US and Canada
 US $30.00  for institutions
 Annual ASCII electronic copy costs are:
 US $15.00  for individuals
 Add $5.00 to hardcopy costs to receive both ASCII and hardcopy.
 Site licensing is available for public primary and secondary education
 networks.  Discounts are available for school district multiple
 sub-scriptions.
 For a subscription form, questions, or to submit materials, contact:
 Kathy Rutkowski, Editor
 Chaos Publications
 13102 Weather Vane Way
 Herndon, VA  22071
 USA
 Phone:  703-471-0593
 EMail:  info@netteach.chaos.com
  1. ————-

ORGANIZATIONS:

  1. ————-
 AskERIC
 ERIC Clearinghouse on Information Resources
 Center for Science and Technology
 Syracuse University
 Syracuse, New York  13244-4100
 USA
 Phone:  315-443-9114
 Fax:    315-443-5448
 EMail:  askeric@ericir.syr.edu

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   According to a recent electronic brochure, "The Educational
   Resources Information Center (ERIC) is a federally-funded national
   information system that provides access to an extensive body of
   education-related literature.  ERIC provides a variety of services
   and products at all education levels."
   Another portion of the electronic brochure states, "AskERIC is an
   Internet-based question-answering service for teachers, library
   media specialists, and administrators.  Anyone involved with K-12
   education can send an e-mail message to AskERIC.  Drawing on the
   extensive resources of the ERIC system, AskERIC staff will respond
   with an answer within 48 working hours."  Educators may have
   questions about primary and secondary education, learning, teaching,
   information technology, or educational administration which AskERIC
   can answer.  Parents AskERIC is a new service for parents looking
   for information to better facilitate their children's developmental
   and educational experiences.  Use the email address listed above.
 Chatback International
 Dr. R. Zenhausern, Executive Director
 Psychology Department
 St. Johns University
 SB 15, Marillac
 Jamaica, NY  11439
 USA
 Phone:  718-990-6447
 Fax:    718-990-6705
 EMail:  drz@sjuvm.stjohns.edu
 The Chatback Trust
 Tom Holloway, UK Director
 25 Clemens Street
 Royal Leamington Spa
 Warwickshire, CV31  2DP
 Phone:  +44-926-888333
 Fax:    +44-926-420204
 EMail:  t.holloway@warwick.ac.uk
   The Chatback Trust is the organization which was originally
   concerned primarily with school children with various types of
   language disorder.  Chatback International is the expansion of that
   project onto the Internet and is concerned with the use of networks
   to educate all children.

Sellers [Page 29] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 Consortium for School Networking
 P.O. Box 65193
 Washington, DC  20035-5193
 USA
 Phone:  202-466-6296
 Fax:    202-872-4318
 EMail:  info@cosn.org
   According to a recent brochure, "The Consortium for School
   Networking is a membership organization of institutions formed to
   further the development and use of computer network technology in
   K-12 education." To join CoSN, request an application at the above
   address.  To contribute your ideas, lesson plans, projects, etc.,
   for others to access over the Internet, send to email to:
        ferdi@digital.cosn.org
 European Schools Project
 University of Amsterdam
 CICT/SCO
 Grote Bickerrsstraat 72
 1013 KS Amsterdam
 The Netherlands
 Contact: Dr. Pauline Meijer or Dr. Henk Sligte
 Phone:   +31-20-5251248
 Fax:     +31-20-5251211
 EMail:   risc@esp.educ.uva.nl
   The European Schools Project is "a support system for secondary
   schools to explore applications of educational telematics."
 FidoNet
 1151 SW Vermont Street
 Portland, OR 97219
 USA
 Contact: Janet Murray
 Phone:   503-280-5280
 EMail:   jmurray@psg.com
   FidoNet is a dial-up, store-and-forward messaging system which takes
   advantage of late night phone rates to send and receive email and
   conferences.

Sellers [Page 30] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 FrEdMail Foundation
 P.O. Box 243,
 Bonita, CA 91908
 USA
 Contact: Al Rogers
 Phone:   619-475-4852
 EMail:   arogers@bonita.cerf.fred.org
 International Education and Research Network (I*EARN)
 c/o Copen Family Fund
 345 Kear Street
 Yorktown Heights, NY 10598
 USA
 Contact: Dr. Edwin H. Gragert
 Phone:   914-962-5864
 Fax:     914-962-6472
 EMail:  ed1@copenfund.igc.apc.org
   According to Dr. Gragert, "The purpose of the I*EARN Network is to
   create low-cost telecommunications models to demonstrate that
   elementary and secondary students can make a meaningful contribution
   to the health and welfare of people and the planet.  We want to see
   students go beyond simply being "pen-pals" to use telecommunications
   in joint student projects as part of the educational process."
   I*EARN works with international service and youth organizations to
   add telecommunications to existing partnerships.
 KIDLINK Society
 4815 Saltrod
 Norway
 Phone:   +47-370-31204
 Fax:     +47-370-27111
 EMail:   opresno@extern.uio.no
 Contact: Odd de Presno
   KIDLINK is the organization that runs the yearly KIDS projects,
   KIDS-94, KIDS-95, etc.  For information on getting files related to
   KIDS-NN/KIDLINK, see "Electronic Mail Lists" in this section.  For
   access to the KIDS Gopher, see "Network Servers" in this section.
 K12Net
 1151 SW Vermont Street
 Portland, OR 97219
 USA
 Phone:   503-280-5280
 Contact: Janet Murray
 EMail:   jmurray@psg.com

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   K12Net is a collection of conferences devoted to curriculum,
   language exchanges with native speakers, and classroom-to-classroom
   projects designed by teachers in K-12 education.  The conferences
   are privately distributed among FidoNet-compatible bulletin board
   systems on five continents and are also available as Usenet
   Newsgroups in the hierarchy "k12."  More information about K12Net is
   available from gopher.psg.com.
    via telnet...
      telnet gopher.psg.com
      login:  gopher
    via gopher...
      gopher.psg.com (port 70)
 NASA Central Operation of Resources for Educators (CORE)
 Lorain County Joint Vocational School
 15181 Route 58 South
 Oberlin, OH  44074
 USA
 Phone:   216-774-1051, x293/294
 Fax:     216-774-2144
   For a copy of the video "Global Quest: The Internet in the
   Classroom" released by the NASA NREN K-12 Initiative contact the
   above address.  The fee for the video is cost plus shipping and
   handling.  You may also make a copy yourself by taking a blank copy
   to the nearest NASA Teacher Resource Center or by taping from NASA
   Select television.  For information on the NASA Teacher Resource
   Center Network or on NASA Select, contact your nearest NASA facility
   or log in to NASA Spacelink.  (See NASA Spacelink in "Network
   Servers".)
 National Center for Education Statistics
 555 New Jersey Ave N.W., R.410 C
 Washington DC 20208-5651
 USA
 Phone:   202-219-1364
 Contact: Jerry Malitz
 EMail:   ncesinfo@inet.ed.gov
 Fax:     219-1728
   For a copy of the video "Experience the Power: Network Technology
   for Education" released by NCES contact the above address.  If you
   contact them via email to order a video be sure that you send your
   mailing address.

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 InterNIC Information Services
 General Atomics
 P.O. Box 85608
 San Diego, California 92186-9784
 USA
 Phone:  800-444-4345
         619-455-4600
 Fax:    619-455-3990
 EMail:  info@internic.net
   The InterNIC is a (United States) National Science Foundation funded
   group tasked with providing information services to the United
   States research and education networking community.  The Reference
   Desk is in operation Monday through Friday, from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00
   p.m.  Pacific Time.
 Internet Society
 1895 Preston White Drive
 Suite 100
 Reston, Virginia  22091
 USA
 Phone:  703-648-9888
 Fax:    703-620-0913
 EMail:  isoc@isoc.org
      The Internet Society is an international membership organization
      for individuals and organizations that support its goals of
      promoting the use of the Internet:
        A. To facilitate and support the technical evolution of the
           Internet as a research and education infrastructure, and
           to stimulate the involvement of the scientific community,
           industry, government and others in the evolution of the
           Internet;
        B. To educate the scientific community, industry and the public
           at large concerning the technology, use and application of
           the Internet;
        C. To promote educational applications of Internet technology
           for the benefit of government, colleges and universities,
           industry, and the public at large;
        D. To provide a forum for exploration of new Internet
           applications, and to stimulate collaboration among
           organizations in their operational use of the global
           Internet.

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 Reseaux IP Europeens Network Coordination Centre (RIPE NCC)
 Kruislaan 409
 NL-1098 SJ  Amsterdam
 The Netherlands
 Phone: +31 20 592 5065
 Fax:   +31 20 592 5090
 EMail: ncc@ripe.net
    The RIPE NCC assists European Internet operators and refers
    users to appropriate operators.
    Services include:
  1. delegated registry for network and

Autonomous System numbers

  1. whois database at whois.ripe.net
  2. document store at ftp.ripe.net

(also accessible via gopher and wais)

  1. interactive information service

(via telnet at info.ripe.net)

 Asia Pacific Network Information Center
 c/o University of Tokyo, Computer Center
 2-11-16 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113
 Japan
 Phone:  +81-3-5684-7747
 Fax:    +81-3-5684-7256
 EMail:  hostmaster@apnic.net
    The APNIC is a cooperative organization of national network
    information centers in the Asia Pacific region operating under the
    auspices of the Asia Pacific Coordinating Committee for
    Intercontinental Research Networks.  APNIC is tasked with providing
    information and registration services to networking organizations
    throughout the Asia and Pacific Rim regions.

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10. References

 [1] Malkin, G., and A. Marine, "FYI on Questions and Answers:
     Answers to Commonly Asked 'New Internet User' Questions", FYI 4,
     RFC 1325, Xylogics, SRI, May 1992.
 [2] Krol, E., and E. Hoffman, "What is the Internet?" FYI 20, RFC
     1462, University of Illinois, Merit Network, Inc., May 1993.
 [3] "Restructuring Schools:  A Systematic View" in Action Line, the
     newsletter of the Maryland State Teachers Association, a National
     Education Association Affiliate.  R. Kuhn, Editor.  No. 93-6.
     June, 1993.
 [4] Sivin, J. P. and E. R. Bialo (1992) "Ethical Uses of Information
     Technologies in Education."  Washington, DC:  U.S. Department of
     Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of
     Justice.
 [5] Hoffman, E. and L. Jackson, "Introducing the Internet--A Short
     Bibliography of Introductory Internetworking Reading for the
     Network Novice", FYI 19, RFC 1463, Merit Network, Inc., NASA, May
     1993.

11. Security Considerations

 General security considerations are discussed in Section 6 of this
 document.

12. Author's Address

 Jennifer Sellers
 NASA NREN
 700 13th Street, NW
 Suite 950
 Washington, DC  20005
 USA
 Phone: 202-434-8954
 EMail: sellers@quest.arc.nasa.gov

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APPENDIX A: EXAMPLES OF PROJECTS USING THE INTERNET

 The following examples of projects using the Internet appeared on the
 Kidsphere electronic mailing list during the 1992-93 school year.
 The messages have been edited in the interest of space and because
 many of the details about how to participate are dated, but the
 information presented can give you a feel for the types and range of
 projects that happen today.
 =========================================
 Example One, "Middle School Math Project"
 =========================================
 This is the official invitation to participate in "Puzzle Now!".
 "Puzzle Now!" is an interdisciplinary project using educational
 technology as a tool to integrate the curriculum.  "Puzzle Now!"
 provides teams of mathematics and language arts teachers and students
 with thematic puzzle problems via VA.PEN.
 PROJECT       :  Puzzle Now!
 SUBJECT AREA  :  Mathematics/Language Arts
 GRADE LEVEL   :  6 - 8
 DURATION      :  This project will consist of eight - one week
                  cycles.
 PROJECT GOALS :  -to increase student motivation for math
                  problem solving;
  1. to emphasize the importance of addressing

problems in a clear, concise, and logical

                   manner;
  1. to provide students with opportunities for

developing skills in written expression;

  1. to familiarize students with computer and

modem as tools for problem solving projects.

 PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
                  The puzzles presented in this project are no
                  mere entertainment.  These puzzles will help
                  the student reason logically, develop thinking
                  skills, and will assist in the understanding of
                  many practical disciplines, such as geometry.

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                  IT IS VERY IMPORTANT to remember that getting
                  the correct answer isn't as important as
                  figuring out how to find it.
                  DO THE SOLUTIONS HAVE TO BE SUBMITTED IN A
                  PARTICULAR FASHION?  Yes, the solution format
                  requires that the group/team/individual first
                  1) restate the puzzle/problem; 2) explain the
                  strategy, or strategies used in finding the
                  answer;  3) state the answer.
                  Your team/class may turn in only one solution.
                  That means you must work together to develop one
                  solution to be examined by the "Puzzlemeister".
 ==========================================
 Example Two, "Poetry Contest, Grades 9-12"
 ==========================================
                National Public Telecomputing Network
                                --
                  Academy One Project Announcement
                   FIRST ANNUAL INTERNET POETRY CONTEST
                    FOR SECONDARY STUDENTS GRADES 9-12
  • FEATURED FORM: THE SONNET*
  • First Place Award: $50.00*
  • Second Place Award: $25.00*
  • Honorable Mentions: $10.00*
 The first annual Internet Poetry Contest invites entries from
 students in grades 9-12 for original sonnets written within the last
 3 years.  The purpose of the contest is to encourage young creative
 writers to practice the discipline needed to write in a particular
 poetic form, in this case, the sonnet form.  (The sonnet is defined
 and examples are given below.)  Sonnets may be submitted in any
 recognized sonnet form including Petrarchan, Shakespearean, Miltonic,
 or Spenserian.
 Students submitting entries must include a form (given below)
 certifying that each sonnet entered in the contest is original and
 written within the last 3 years.  The deadline for mailing entries is
 April 30, 1993.  Winners will be notified individually and winning
 entries will also be announced via Academy I on the Internet.

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 Judges for the contest are current or retired English instructors
 throughout the United States.
 ==============================================
 Example Three,  "Tracking Monarch Butterflies"
 ==============================================
 Our school has begun a study of monarchs using Nova's Animal
 Pathfinders.  After working through these lessons, which will give us
 the necessary background information, we will design the format for
 collecting the data on sighting monarchs. We will send information on
 the format to any school who wishes to participate in the project.
 Our fifth grade students will begin this project and we hope that
 students from kindergarten through twelfth grade will get involved.
 We hope that schools from south to north along the migratory flyways
 will be interested in joining and collecting data about first
 sightings and population counts.  We still have not found the
 lepidopterists who did the initial research but will keep looking.
 Hope to hear from you soon.
 =======================================
 Example Four, "Simulated Space Mission"
 =======================================
            National Public Telecomputing Network
                          --
              Academy One Program Announcement
 SPECIAL EVENT: NESPUT 24-HOUR CENTENNIAL SPACE SHUTTLE
                 SIMULATED MISSION ON APRIL 27, 1993
 SCHOOLS, TEACHERS, STUDENTS, SPACE ENTHUSIASTS:
 The April 27 simulated and telecommunicated space shuttle mission is
 a mostly real-time 24 hour mission involving numerous activities in
 space.  Your school could be involved for an entire 24 hour period or
 for a much lesser amount of time (say just your school day or even a
 few hours).  During that 24 hour period, schools will be linked to
 share information via telecommunications and a variety of activities
 will be going on via telecommunications and in the classroom--most of
 them created by the schools and students involved.  The space shuttle
 Centennial at University School in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a real and
 permanent simulator, will act as itself and use its mission control
 area as Houston.  Reports on the progress of our real student

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 astronauts will be posted on the listserv and via the menus on NPTN
 affiliate systems carrying Academy One.  Your school can act as any
 one of the following:
 A second American shuttle.
 A second Russian shuttle.
 A weather reporting station for your area.
 One of NASA's alternate landing sites.
 A science station posing questions and problems for all
   astronauts in simulated space.
 An information station, posting interesting information of
   interest about the space shuttle and the space program.
 A graphics station, sending GIF files to other schools
   (especially good if you have a scanner for your computer).
 Any other type of space related station or activity you can
   imagine.
 ==================================================
 Example Five, "Equinox Experiment and Calculation"
 ==================================================
             ATTENTION - MARCH 20, l993 IS THE EQUINOX
              A WORLDWIDE SCIENCE AND MATH EXPERIMENT
                      ERATOSTHENES EXPERIMENT
 Eratosthenes, a Greek geographer (about 276 to 194 B.C.), made a
 surprisingly accurate estimate of the earth's circumference.  In the
 great library in Alexandria he read that a deep vertical well near
 Syene, in southern Egypt, was entirely lit up by the sun at noon once
 a year.  Eratosthenes reasoned that at this time sun must be directly
 overhead, with its rays shining directly into the well.  In
 Alexandria, almost due north of Syene, he knew that the sun was not
 directly overhead at noon on the same day because a vertical object
 cast a shadow.  Eratosthenes could now measure the circumference of
 the earth (sorry Columbus) by making two assumptions - that the earth
 is round and that the sun's rays are essentially parallel.  He set up
 a vertical post at Alexandria and measured the angle of its shadow
 when the well at Syene was completely sunlit.  Eratosthenes knew from
 geometry that the size of the measured angle equaled the size of the
 angle at the earth's center between Syene and Alexandria.  Knowing
 also that the arc of an angle this size was 1/50 of a circle, and
 that the distance between Syene and Alexandria was 5000 stadia, he
 multiplied 5000 by 50 to find the earth's circumference.  His result,
 250,000 stadia (about 46,250 km) is quite close to modern

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 measurements.  Investigating the Earth, AGI, l970, Chapter 3, p. 66.
 The formula Eratosthenes used is:
      D         A        d=distance between Syene and Alexandria
    _____  =  _____      A=360 degrees assumption of round earth
                         a=shadow angle of vertical stick
      d         a        D=to be determined (circumference)
  1. —————————————————————
 Are you interested in participating?
 All you need to do is place a vertical stick (shaft) into the ground
 at your school and when the sun reaches it's highest vertical  assent
 for the day (solar noon), measure the  angle  of the shadow of the
 stick.
  1. \
  2. \

stick → - \

  1. a \ a=shadow angle
  2. \
  3. \

ground_-\_

 By doing this experiment on the equinox we all know that the vertical
 rays of the sun are directly over the equator, like the well  at
 Syene.  Using a globe or an atlas the  distance  between your
 location and the equator can be determined and the  circum- ference
 can be calculated.

But how about sharing your shadow angle measurement with others

 around the real globe.
 ******************************************************************
 Send your measurement of the shadow angle____________degrees
 Send your location city ____________________________________
 Send your location country _________________________________
 Send your latitude _________________________________________
 Send your longitude ________________________________________

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 We will compile all the data and send you a copy to use in your
 classroom to compare the various locations and angles.
 If you're interested send us your data.  We will compile and return
 it to you.
 =====================================
 Example Six, "Famous Black Americans"
 =====================================
 Project Name:        Who Am I?:  Famous Black Americans
 Subject Area:        Social Studies, Research Skills
 Grade Level:         Grades 4-12
 Project Description: The goal of this project is to assist students
                      in increasing their knowledge of American
                      black history.  Each week, on Monday Morning,
                      a set of three or four clues will be sent to
                      your account.  The same will occur on
                      Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings.
                      At any time, through the end of the day on
                      Friday, your students may send their answer
                      (the name of the famous American identified
                      by the clues) to the following online
                      address:
                            whoami@radford.vak12ed.edu
                      A class should send only one answer each
                      week.  If two are sent, the sponsors will
                      assume that the first of the answers is the
                      one intended to be submitted.
                      The sponsor will collect all answers, compile
                      a listing of classes who send the correct
                      answers, and will forward this list to all
                      participants via email by early on the
                      following Monday morning.  On that morning,
                      in addition, the sponsor will send all
                      classes a new problem.
                      This project lasts five weeks, with clues
                      each week being given for a different famous
                      person in American history.

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 Project Length:      Five Weeks
 Awards:              Every Monday morning, participating classes
                      will receive an online message from the
                      sponsor congratulating those who have sent
                      correct answers during the previous week.  At
                      the end of the five weeks, attractive
                      certificates will be awarded to all
                      participating classes (sent by way of the
                      Postal Service).  In addition, classes which
                      have participated in each of the five weeks
                      will receive a separate style of certificate
                      for their school or class.

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APPENDIX B: HOW TO GET DOCUMENTS ELECTRONICALLY

 The traditional way to access files available online on the Internet
 is via a program based on the File Transfer Protocol (FTP).  Many
 information sites have hosts that allow "anonymous" FTP, meaning you
 don't need to already have an account on the host in order to access
 the files it makes public.  This appendix will describe obtaining
 files via anonymous FTP and describe obtaining files via the Internet
 Gopher program.
 The online files sited in Suggested Reading can all be retrieved via
 anonymous FTP. (Most can also be retrieved via Gopher.)  In most
 cases, when you see a reference to a file available for FTP, the
 reference will give you both a computer hostname and a pathname.  So,
 for example, the ASCII text version of the EARN Resource Tool Guide
 is on the host naic.nasa.gov in the /files/general_info directory as
 earn-resource-tool-guide.txt.
 Many online files are mirrored on more than one host.  RFC files, for
 example, are so popular that several hosts act as repositories for
 them; so, when they are cited, rarely is a hostname given.  To find
 out all about getting RFCs and FYIs, send a message to rfc-
 info@isi.edu and in the body of the message, type 'help:
 ways_to_get_rfcs'.  RFCs are available both via electronic mail and
 via Anonymous FTP, as well as via many Gophers.
 Anonymous FTP
    Some of this information about transferring files based on text
    from the access.guide file referenced in FYI 19 [5] and written by
    Ellen Hoffman and Lenore Jackson.
    If you are on a computer connected to the Internet and can use
    FTP, you can access files online.  If your VM/CMS, VAX/VMS, UNIX,
    DOS, Macintosh, or other computer system has FTP capability, you
    can probably use the sample commands as they are listed.  If your
    computer doesn't work using the sample commands, you may still
    have FTP access.  You will need to ask your system administrator
    or local network consultant.  If you don't have FTP, you may be
    able to get files via electronic mail.
    If you are using a UNIX machine, you can use FTP directly from a
    system prompt.  For other computers, there are commercial and
    public domain programs that will allow you to use FTP.  (For
    example, there is a very easy-to-use shareware program called
    "Fetch" for the Macintosh.)

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    Once you establish that you have FTP access, you will need to send
    a series of commands to reach the host computer with the file you
    want, connect to the appropriate directory, and have the file
    transferred to your computer.  A typical FTP session is described
    here, but not all software is exactly alike.  If you have
    problems, check your software's documentation ('man' page) or
    contact your local help-desk.
    This session uses the EARN Guide to Network Resource Tools in its
    naic.nasa.gov home as an example file to be transferred.
    Here's what you can do:
    (1) Tell your computer what host you are trying to reach:
                  ftp naic.nasa.gov
    (2) Log in to the computer with the username "anonymous".  You
        will be prompted for a password; most often it is preferred
        that you use your complete email address as your password.
    (3) Navigate through the directory to find the file you need.  Two
        useful commands for doing so are the one to change directories
        ('cd'), which you can use to step through more than one directory
        at a time:
                  cd files/general_info
        and the command which shows you the files and subdirectories
        within a directory:
                  dir
    (4) Give a command to have the file sent to your computer:
                  get earn-resource-tools.txt
    (5) Quit FTP:
                  quit
    RFC Repositories:
    Following is a list of hosts that are primary repositories for
    RFCs, and, for each host, the pathname to the directory that
    houses these files:
  1. ds.internic.net rfc
  2. nis.nsf.net internet/documents/rfc
  3. nisc.jvnc.net rfc
  4. venera.isi.edu in-notes

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  1. wuarchive.wustl.edu info/rfc
  2. src.doc.ic.ac.uk rfc
    RFCs are in the file format you see in the Suggested Readings
    section, e.g., rfc####.txt, with #### being the number of the RFC.
    To retrieve an RFC, then, you would FTP to a host above, log in as
    anonymous, cd to the directory noted, and retrieve the RFC you
    want.  The file ways_to_get_rfcs, mentioned above, explains which
    sites make RFCs available for electronic mail retrieval, and
    provides directions for doing so.
    Remember that FYI documents, such as this one, are also RFCs, so
    the information about RFCs applies to FYIs as well.  You can
    usually retrieve FYIs either by their RFC number, or by their FYI
    number.  FYI numbers are in the format fyi##.txt, where ## is the
    number of the FYI.
 Gopher
    A relatively new method of viewing and retrieving information is
    the Internet Gopher.  A Gopher server presents information to a
    users via a series of menus.  By choosing menu items, the user is
    led to files or to other services available on the Internet.
    Gopher can also retrieve files for the user because it has an
    interface to the File Transfer Protocol.  So you can use Gopher to
    obtain files rather than FTP.  Once you have located a file you
    want, you also have the option of mailing it electronically.
    Several Gopher servers are listed in the Network Servers portion
    of Section 9 "Resources and Contacts".  The InterNIC gopher, for
    example, is one that provides access to the RFCs.
    Normally, the best way to access a Gopher server is by running a
    Gopher client on your own host or network.  However, if you do not
    have that software, many Gophers are accessible via Telnet (see
    the addresses in Section 9).  To Telnet to a host, most often you
    would give the command "telnet" and the hostname, for example:
    telnet naic.nasa.gov.
    Unlike FTP repositories, which are accessible over the network but
    which you have to access one at a time, many Gophers are linked
    together over the Internet.  Therefore, if you have access to one
    Gopher, you usually have access to hundreds more.  This huge
    network of gophers and the vast amount of information they serve
    is referred to as "gopherspace".  You can use a service within
    Gopher called "Veronica" to search gopherspace to see if there is
    more information out there of a particular type you are interested

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    in finding.  From within Gopher, look for a menu item such as
    "Search Gopherspace Using Veronica" to find out more information
    about using the Veronica service.

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APPENDIX C: GLOSSARY OF TERMS USED IN THIS DOCUMENT

 The following is a short glossary of terms used in this document.
 For a more complete glossary of Internet terms, refer to FYI 18 (RFC
 1392), "Internet Users' Glossary".  These definitions are largely
 excerpted from that glossary.  (See Section 8, "Suggested Reading",
 above.)
 Anonymous FTP
    Accessing data via the File Transfer Protocol using the special
    username "anonymous".  This was devised as a method to provide a
    relatively secure way of providing restricted access to public
    data.  Users who wish to acquire data from a public source may use
    FTP to connect to the source, then use the special username
    "anonymous" and their email address as the password to log into a
    public data area.
 Cracker
    A person who uses computer knowledge to attempt to gain access to
    computer systems and/or maliciously damage those systems or data.
 Dial-in (also dial-up)
    A connection, usually made via modems, between two computers (or
    servers) over standard voice grade telephone lines.
 Download
    To copy data from a remote computer to a local computer.  The
    opposite of upload.
 DSU/CSU (Data Service Unit/Channel Service Unit)
    The digital equivalent of a modem.  A Channel Service Unit
    connects to a telephone company-provided digital data circuit, and
    a Data Service Unit provides the electronics required to connect
    digital equipment to the CSU.  Paired together a DSU/CSU allows
    computer equipment to be connected into the telephone digital
    service for highly conditioned, high speed data communications.
 Electronic Bulletin Board System (BBS)
    A computer, and associated software, which typically provides
    electronic messaging services, archives of files, and any other
    services or activities of interest to the bulletin board system's
    operator.  Although BBSs have traditionally been the domain of

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    hobbyists, an increasing number of BBSs are connected directly to
    the Internet, and many BBSs are currently operated by government,
    educational, and research institutions.
 EMail (Electronic Mail)
    A system whereby a computer user can exchange messages with other
    computer users (or groups of users) via a communications network.
 FidoNet
    A network of computers interconnected using the FIDO dial-up
    protocols.  The FIDO protocol provides a means of "store and
    forward" file transfer similar to UUCP.
 FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
    A protocol which allows a user on one host to access, and transfer
    files to and from, another host over a network.  Also, FTP is
    usually the name of the program the user invokes to execute the
    protocol.
 FYI (For Your Information)
    A subseries of RFCs that are not technical standards or
    descriptions of protocols.  FYIs convey general information about
    topics related to TCP/IP or the Internet.  See also:  RFC (Request
    for Comments).
 Gopher
    A distributed information service that links many types of
    information from all around the Internet and presents it to the
    user in a series of menus.  Because hundreds of Gopher servers
    cooperate in providing access to information and services, the
    user sees a single, uniform interface to information that actually
    resides on different host computers.  The Gopher interface is very
    easy to use, and public domain versions of the clients and servers
    are available.
 Hacker
    A person who delights in having an intimate understanding of the
    internal workings of a system, computers and computer networks in
    particular.  The popular media has corrupted this term to give it
    the pejorative connotation of a person who maliciously uses
    computer knowledge to cause damage to computers and data.  The
    proper term for this type of person is "cracker".

Sellers [Page 48] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF)
    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-range and mid-range protocol and architectural
    issues.  It is a major source of protocol proposals and standards.
 InterNIC
    A Network Information Center (NIC), funded by the National Science
    foundation, that provides information about the Internet.  The
    InterNIC is a team of three contractors, each of which focuses on
    a particular network support task.  The three tasks are:
    Information Services (the task most often cited in this document),
    Registration Services, and Directory and Database Services.
 Kbs (Kilo-Bits per Second)
    A data transmission rate expressed in 1000 bit per second units.
    For example, 56Kbs is 56*1000=56,000 bits per second.
 LAN (Local Area Network)
    A data network intended to serve an area of only a few square
    kilometers or less.  Since such are networks relatively small they
    can usually be directly controlled by the users and operate at
    relatively high speeds (up to 100Mb/s [10 million bits per
    second]) over inexpensive wiring.
 Leased line
    A leased line is a special phone company permanent connection
    between two locations.  Leased lines are generally used where
    high-speed data (usually 960 characters per second and higher) is
    continually exchanged between two computers (in the Internet,
    generally between routers).  A leased line is billed at the same
    rate per month independent of how much the line is used and can be
    cheaper than using dial modems depending on the usage.  Leased
    lines may also be used where higher data rates are needed beyond
    what a dial modem can provide.
 Listserv (mailing list server)
    An automated program that accepts mail messages from users and
    performs basic operations on mailing lists for those users.  In
    the Internet, listservs are usually accessed as "listname@host";
    for example, the list server for the hypothetical list

Sellers [Page 49] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

    "newsreports@acme.org" would be called "listserv@acme.org".
    Sending email to "newsreports@acme.org" causes the message to be
    sent to all the list subscribers, while sending a message (to
    subscribe or unsubscribe, for example) to "listserv@acme.org"
    sends the message only to the list server.  Not all mailing lists
    use list servers to handle list administration duties.
 Mailing Lists
    A list of email addresses.  Generally, a mailing list is used to
    discuss certain set of topics, and different mailing lists discuss
    different topics.  A mailing list may be moderated, that is
    messages sent to the list are actually sent to a moderator who
    determines whether or not to send the messages on to everyone
    else.  Many mailing lists are maintained by a "listserv" (list
    server) program that automatically handles operations such as
    adding new people to the list.  (See above.)  In the Internet, for
    those mailing lists maintained by a human, rather than by a
    listserv, you can generally subscribe to a list by sending a mail
    message to: "listname-REQUEST@host" and in the body of the message
    enter a request to subscribe.  To send messages to other
    subscribers, you will then use the address "listname@host".
 Modem (MODulator/DEModulator)
    A device that converts the digital signals used by computers into
    analog signals needed by voice telephone systems.  Modems can be
    "dial" or "leased line" type.  Dial type modems are used on normal
    telephone lines to call remote computers, and usually operate at
    speeds between 120 to 1,920 characters per second.
 Network Access Provider (Network Service Provider)
    Any organization that provides network connectivity or dial-up
    access.  Service providers may be corporations, government
    agencies, universities, or other organizations.
 Network News
    Another name for "Usenet News".

Sellers [Page 50] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 NIC (Network Information Center)
    A central place where information about a network within the
    Internet is maintained.  Usually NICs are staffed by personnel who
    answer user telephone calls and electronic mail, and provide
    general network usage information and referrals, among other
    possible tasks.  Most network service providers also provide a NIC
    for their users.
 Port
    TCP/IP assigns at least one address to a host computer, but
    applications such as FTP must talk to a corresponding server
    application on the host.  The "port" is the way TCP/IP designates
    the remote application.  Most common Internet servers have
    specific port numbers associated with them.  For example, Telnet
    uses port number 23.  These are known as "well known ports" and
    allow application programmers to write standard applications (such
    as Telnet, FTP, etc.) that "know" where the corresponding server
    is on a particular host.
 PPP  (Point to Point Protocol)
    A protocol used to establish TCP/IP connections using serial lines
    such as dial-up telephone lines.  Similar to SLIP (see below), PPP
    is a later standard that includes features such as demand dial-up,
    compression, better flow control, etc.
 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).
 Protocol Stack
    A series of protocols linked together to provide an end-to-end
    service.  For example, the File Transfer Protocol uses the
    Transmission Control Protocol, which uses the Internet Protocol,
    which may use the Point to Point protocol, to transfer a file from
    one computer to another.  The series FTP->TCP->IP->PPP is called a
    protocol stack.

Sellers [Page 51] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 RFC (Request for Comments)
    The document series, begun in 1969, which describes the Internet
    suite of protocols and related experiments.  Not all (in fact very
    few) RFCs describe Internet standards, but all Internet standards
    are written up as RFCs.  The RFCs include the documentary record
    of the Internet standards process.
 Router
    A computer which forwards traffic between networks.  The
    forwarding decision is based on network layer information and
    routing tables, often constructed by routing protocols.
 SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol)
    A protocol used to establish TCP/IP connections using serial lines
    such as dial-up telephone lines.  Small computers, such as PCs and
    Macintoshes, can use SLIP to dial up to servers, which then allow
    the computer to act as a full Internet node.  SLIP is generally
    used at sites with a few users as a cheaper alternative than a
    full Internet connection.  SLIP is being replaced by PPP at many
    sites.
 TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)
    TCP/IP is named for two of the major communications protocols used
    within the Internet (TCP and IP).  These protocols (along with
    several others) provide the basic foundation for communications
    between hosts in the Internet.  All of the service protocols, such
    as FTP, Telnet, Gopher, use TCP/IP to transfer information.
 Telnet
    Telnet is the Internet standard protocol for remote terminal
    connection service.  The name "telnet" also is used to refer to
    programs that allow interactive access to remote computers, as
    well as the action of using said programs.  For example, the
    phrase "Telnet to host xyzzy." means to interactively log into
    host "xyzzy" from some other host in the Internet.
 Upload
    To copy data from a local computer to a remote computer.  The
    opposite of download.

Sellers [Page 52] RFC 1578 FYI Q/A - for Schools February 1994

 Usenet News
    An electronic bulletin board system created originally by the Unix
    community and which is accessible via the Internet.  Usenet News
    forms a discussion forum accessible by millions of users in almost
    every country in the world.  Usenet News consists of thousands of
    topics arranged in a heirarchical form.  Major topics include
    "comp" for computer topics, "rec" for recreational topics, "soc"
    for social topics, "sci" for science topics, etc.  Within the
    major topics are subtopics, such as "rec.music.classical" for
    classical music, or "sci.med.physics" for discussions relating to
    the physics of medical science.
 UUCP (Unix-to-Unix CoPy)
    This was initially a program run under the UNIX operating system
    that allowed one UNIX system to send files to another UNIX system
    via dial-up phone lines.  Today, the term is more commonly used to
    describe the large international network which uses the UUCP
    protocol to pass news and electronic mail.
 Virus
    A program which replicates itself on computer systems by
    incorporating itself into other programs which are shared among
    computer systems.
 WAIS (Wide Area Information Server)
    A distributed information service which offers simple natural
    language input, indexed searching for fast retrieval, and a
    "relevance feedback" mechanism which allows the results of initial
    searches to influence future searches.  Public domain
    implementations are available.
 WWW (World Wide Web)
    A hypertext-based, distributed information system created by
    researchers at CERN in Switzerland.  Users may create, edit or
    browse hypertext documents.  The clients and servers are freely
    available.  The WWW servers are interconnected to allow a user to
    traverse the Web from any starting point; in addition, many other
    servers such as WAIS and Gopher have been incorporated into the
    WWW servers.

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