Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site hou3c.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!hou3c!@RAND-UNIX.ARPA From: lauren@vortex.uucp Newsgroups: net.mail.headers Subject: Re: my note on MCI mail Message-ID: <8402190015.6178.1.VT2.2@vortex.UUCP> Date: Sun, 19-Feb-84 03:15:11 EST Article-I.D.: hou3c.304 Posted: Sun Feb 19 03:15:11 1984 Date-Received: Mon, 20-Feb-84 07:57:17 EST Sender: ka@hou3c.UUCP (Kenneth Almquist) Lines: 22 To: Margulies@MIT-MULTICS.ARPA In-Reply-To: Your message of Sat, 18 Feb 84 17:23 EST The flaw in your argument is assuming that "corporate"-type entities demand that ALL of their communications be super reliable and secure. In fact, what many of them want is to be able to carry on much the same sorts of "non-critical" applications that we currently base on ARPANET, UUCP, etc. They want to chat among themselves, "talk" informally with researchers at other locations, tell jokes, and otherwise do the sorts of things the rest of us do now. For these sorts of applications, security and reliability are not critical, nor are such communications worth a lot of money. Force people to pay more than a very modest amount for such services, and they won't participate at all, or only participate for very "high-value" type communications. It's specifically the "lower-value", more informal sorts of communications that I consider to be of importance and that I'm trying to promote. Most businesses are not yet willing to entrust important communications to electronic mail (for a number of technical and legal reasons -- have you read MCI's disclaimer for MCI mail?) and I don't intend to try change their mind at this point. Nor am I offering a UUCP electronic funds transfer service... so don't panic! --Lauren--