On 2/1/04, ewen(a)naos.co.nz thus spake:
Much as I don't want to see "the Internet" become a dumbed down IntaWeb clone, I recognise that's just me ("when I want to be wrapped in cotton wool, I know where to find it"). There's a whole bunch of people, probably the majority by an order of magnitude, for whom the Internet, Large As Life, is scary, and intruding on their ability to just do the things they want to (eg, their machine keeps getting infected).
So The Internet for n00bs will probably happen eventually. I just hope it isn't done in such a way that the only way to join the Real Internet (tm) is to qualify for your own ASN or by building tunnels through increasingly inappropriate application level protocols.
Exactly my thought. One would think that the minimal infrastructure required for a clued-net drop would be *cheaper* than the net-for-n00b5, by virtue of the fact that the ISP need do nothing but broker a connection. A world in which this was a more costly option would suck mightily. As far as I'm concerned, it's perfectly reasonable for the n00b to have the opportunity to prove themselves out on the plains, and only after failing should they be rounded up and sent to the iN00b. And if said n00b has no interest in proving themselves (or doesn't even comprehend that such a trial exists), then they go directly to iN00b, not passing go nor collecting $200. There's no such thing as a free lunch; a full network connection should come with commensurate responsibilities, which can either be met at a personal level(at the price of time and effort) or by purchase from the ISP(in cold hard cash). Regards, Ed Hintz ed(a)hintz.org