From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!seismo!hao!hplabs!sri-unix!mclure
Newsgroups: net.news
Title: Re: New proposal for handling net traffi - (nf)
Article-I.D.: sri-unix.5296
Posted: Wed Mar  9 06:59:20 1983
Received: Fri Mar 11 08:29:39 1983

#R:watmath:-396000:sri-unix:8200002:000:1329
sri-unix!mclure    Nov 30 22:38:00 1982

I don't like the proposed solution to the ever-increasing news overload
and its effect on Usenet sites.  The proposed solution increases the
hair considerably without addressing the real problem.  I think there
is a *much* better alternative for easing the load caused by news
transmission:

>>> REWRITE UUCP!!! <<<
   Someone should do a complete re-write of that code, while
   at the same time considering what sort of organization will
   produce a more stream-lined and efficient transmission
   facility for news. It would avoid creating massive spool
   directories and deal more intelligently by batching news.
   It would ensure fewer calls to transmit large amounts of
   information by preventing too frequent time-outs as is now
   the case. I could go on...

Our site, ucbvax!menlo70!sri-unix, was recently subjected to incredibly
high loads caused by the interaction of the various uucp software, two
receiving sites, and news transmission. Fortunately we're out of
that thicket for now, but only in a hackish sort of way. We trickle
articles into inews and have terminated one of our neighbors. The
other two possibilities (news batching and uucp sub-dirs) were 
considered and will probably be adopted at some point.

Of all the Unix software I've seen, uucp seems to be by far the most
poorly designed.

	Stuart