What is BITNET?

[ron%brl-vgr at sri-unix.UUCP]

From:      Ron Natalie <ron at brl-vgr>

BITNET is the "Because it's there" network.  It is to the IBM world
what UUCP is to the UNIX world.  BITNET is a little better because it
has a little more coordinated standards group.  Membership is currently
limitted to non-commercial sites.  Mostly, it's universities.  You don't
have to be an IBM.  Penn State has done an implementation for VAX UNIX
The network protocol is RSCS (which is an IBM file spooling protocol)
over synchronous modems.  To join you just grab a couple of phone lines
and some modems and hook up to the nearest site.

Network facilities include mail (RFC822 and a batch version of SMTP),
file transfer, and some remote execution of certain commands.  Currently
there is one ad hoc gateway into the net.  To send mail to a Bitnet
host address it to:
		USER%BITNET-HOST at BERKELEY

The official gateway will be at the University of Wisconsin but I don't
think it is up yet.

-Ron