Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version VT1.00C 11/1/84; site vortex.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!genrad!decvax!vortex!lauren
From: lauren@vortex.UUCP (Lauren Weinstein)
Newsgroups: net.news,net.misc
Subject: Re: A USENET Competitor
Message-ID: <711@vortex.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 12-Jul-85 13:33:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: vortex.711
Posted: Fri Jul 12 13:33:52 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 13-Jul-85 15:30:34 EDT
References: <481@qantel.UUCP>
Organization: Vortex Technology, Los Angeles
Lines: 15
Xref: watmath net.news:3630 net.misc:8229

Sounds like a BBS to me.  Or like the conferences that SOURCE
and several other organizations run.  They are all generally
limited by their facilties so volume isn't too much of a problem.
Of course, since they have your credit card number, and presumably
other information about you as well, they can pin an illegal message
on the poster him or herself pretty easily.  Of course, as the
volume of noise increases (how much of their capacity is being
wasted by messages about the New Coke right now?) they'll probably
find themselves forced into the choice of moderating the discussions
or losing subscribers who don't want to wade through all the muck.
On any centralized system, the time it takes to "wade" is significant
to others as well as to the "wader," since it ties up dialup or other
access lines for extended periods, blocking out other users.

--Lauren--