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sn#238727 filedate 1976-09-27 generic text, type C, neo UTF8
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C00002 00002 .device xgp sides←1
C00009 00003 .cb Scenario
C00019 00004 .cb Protocols
C00023 00005 .cb Research Issues
C00026 00006 .cb Research Plan
C00029 00007 .macro ref ⊂ select 3 nojust boldit
C00030 00008 .skip to column 1
C00033 00009 .cb APPENDIX B. Facilities
C00036 00010 . << budget >>
C00041 ENDMK
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.require "basker.pub[sub,sys]" source;
.font 4 "gacb25"; font 5 "sup";
.require "twocol.pub[sub,sys]" source;
.secname←"Dialnet Proposal";
.next page
.cb Purpose
This is a request for a grant of $xx,xxx to support an eighteen
month study and experimental implementation
of protocols that would permit ARPAnet-like facilities to
be provided to any time-sharing computer system that implemented them
and equipped itself with telephone dialing equipment and data sets.
We call the system Dialnet by analogy, but unlike the ARPAnet, it
requires no administrator to "admit" new members.
The ARPAnet connects about 60 computer facilities supported by
the Department of Defense and allows users of each system to login
on any of the others, allows transmission of messages between users
of different computers, and allows the transfer of files between
computers. More generally, it allows interaction among programs in
different computers.
These facilities have proven valuable in permitting
collaboration between computer scientists at different sites and in
permitting nationwide access to unique facilities likes the MACSYMA
system for computing with algebraic and analytic expressions at
M.I.T. It permits a new form of publication in which documents are
kept in the computer, are continuously updatable, are immediately
accessible throughout the country, and in which comments from readers
are accessible to other readers.
The usefulness of the ARPAnet has prompted many non-defense
installations to try to connect to it, and in some cases this has
been possible, but in other cases the institutional and financial
obstacles have been insuperable. The main financial obstacles are
the need for a dedicated computer called an IMP costing about $80,000
at each site and the need for dedicated communication lines rented by
DoD at great expense from the telephone companies. Other networks
have been started, but they all have problems of expense and %2also
of deciding who should be on them%1. Some facilities have gone to
the expense of joining more than one network.
We propose to design protocols that can be implemented at any
time-shared computer installation without joining any formal network.
The hardware cost will be from $1000 to $5000 depending on how difficult
it is to connect devices to the computer. There will be
programs to operate a telephone dialer (rented from
the telephone company) and to transmit signals and information according
to the protocols. Any installation implementing the protocols will
be able to communicate with any other. The only disadvantage compared
with the ARPAnet will be lower speed and higher cost when the volume
of information transferred is very high.
Like ARPAnet, Dialnet will be most useful to %2full
time-sharing systems%1. In such systems, each user has named disk
files than are kept in the system even when he is absent (and
therefore remotely accessible), and new files can be created by file
transfer from other machines and on receipt of messages. The
usefulness of the message facilities normally requires that users
habitually log in each working day and are most beneficial when users
have individual display terminals in their offices. Further benefits
accrue when reports are normally prepared at terminals and when
secretaries use terminals for letters and messages. However, many
less advanced installations have found the ARPAnet useful and more
and more systems are acquiring economical full time-sharing
capability.
While we expect that the first users of Dialnet will be
regular computer users, the corresponding ARPAnet facilities have
been used by non computer people, Dialnet protocols will not require
ability to program, and we expect increasing use by others as
terminals become more widespread.
In order to make the picture more concrete, here is a
scenario of the use of the system:
.cb Scenario
.macro bc ⊂ begin preface 0;nojust; select 4; indent 2,2; ⊃;
.macro econt ⊂ end continue ⊃
A user named Smith types on his terminal
.bc
mail Organik
.break
Do you have any active work there on human red cell carbonic
anhydrase B?
.end
The system looks up Organik in Smith's correspondent file and
discovers that his computer pseudonym is "NAT" at a computer called UTEX-CHEM1
that is reached at 512 471-3221 via a 1200/150 baud asychronous
modem. It selects an outgoing line with a matching modem, dials the
number and attempts to transmit the message. If the transmitting
computer cannot elicit a response from the desired recipient, it
informs the user that it will try again later and send him a message
when the transmission has succeeded. If the user's correspondent
file did not contain the telepone number and modem characteristics,
the user would have to supply them.
The identity and location of the sender and date and time of the message
are automatically placed at the front of the message.
At the receiving end, if the addressee is logged in on the computer, he
is immediately informed that mail has arrived and from whom. If not
logged in, he will receive the message the next time he logs in. In
either case, he can use the same facility to respond:
.bc
mail Smith
David Piranha (DAVE@UTEX-CHEM3) has a student working on inhibition
by anions of anhydrase B.
.end
Following up on this lead, the user types
.bc
link dave@utex-chem3
.end
A connection is made to the specified computer and, if DAVE is logged in,
he immediately receives a message saying
.bc
** Link request from Smith @SUα-CHEM7 **
.end continue
He could then type "%4link%*" and have his keyboard
and display effectively linked to those of the caller, permitting a
conversation.
Let us suppose, however, that DAVE is not logged in and the caller
is so informed. He then types
.bc
locate dave@utex-chem3
.econt
which obtains the following information from the specified computer:
.bc
David Piranha last logged out at 23:47 on 9 May 1976. Plan:
I will be out of touch May 10 through 16. I plan to visit Martin Shumway
at the University of Utah on May 17 and should return by May 18.
Will check mail from Utah.
.end
Noting that the current date is May 14, so that there is no point in
getting the message there quickly, Smith types
.bc
night mail dave@utex-chem3
.break
I am interested in your work on anhydrase B. If possible, give pointers
to online documentation, else give me a call at 415 497-4430 (Stanford)
or 415 321-7580 (home).
.econt
The "night mail" command causes the message transmission to be deferred until
inexpensive nighttime telephone rates are in force.
Additional capabilities of the Dialnet system can be used to follow up on the
above inquiry, as follows.
.begin indent 0,2; nojust
⊗ The ability to access remote text files will be provided (with permission
of the owners required, of course). This interactive reading facility will
include the addition of "footnotes" to various parts of the text. These
footnotes may be declared private (i.e. belonging to the reader) or public
(available to the author and possibly others).
⊗ It will be possible to run programs on a remote computer, permitting
experiments with programs developed in other places. This facility
will permit the sharing of unique specialized capabilities over
a geographically distributed population.
⊗ File transfers will be permitted, with suitable error detection and
correction features, to permit sharing of data. The communication protocol
should be able to adapt to a wide range of noise conditions on phone lines.
.end
.cb Protocols
In order to make these facilities available, suitable protocols
must be designed, and in the course of this, a number of technical
problems have to be solved. Besides the protocols themselves, which
are communication data structures, there will be a recommended set
of terminal-level commands with syntax prompting and standard error
messages.
We believe that we have the experience to produce a set of workable
protocols, and that it is better to start with an implementation than
to standardize something that doesn't exist. The latter procedure in
recent years has led to gold-plating the requirements to the extent
that the standard is not implementable.
We propose to devise suitable protocols, publish them, and attempt to
convince other installations to implement them. Almost certainly,
initial experience will produce a requirement for changes, and
standardization committees will be formed and set to work. A likely
forum for a standardization effort would be through the ACM to the
American National Standards Committee.
We propose to allow interaction with ARPAnet sites via TIPs and
propose to discuss with ARPA and DCA whether this will be allowed.
The most general use of Dialnet involves a program in one
computer "waking up" and interacting with a program in
another machine. Dialnet protocols will handle human
messages as a subcase of this, taking into account the fact
that the subcase will have the most application for a long time
to come. Messages about where to deliver a message
sent by one time-sharing system to another will be handled as a
special sort of message that one program may send another in cases
where the two programs are not written together, but each must
know a certain "public" language. Thus we will attempt to make
a general format for requests, questions, and assertions suitable
for communication between computer programs. We will study how
to make this mesh with communication between computer programs
and people.
.cb Research Issues
There are many research issues, and we don't expect to settle
all of them in the time and with the resources requested in this proposal.
Since we expect many of the issues will be clarified by the initial
implementation, we will concentrate on getting a reasonable first
implementation into experimental use.
Here are some of the issues we will study:
1. What error correction facilities are required to make up for
the deficiencies of telephone lines?
2. What is the minimal necessary burden on the time-sharing
computers carrying out the communication? What is the trade-off
between buffer size and compute time?
3. Can dial-up telephone communication rates meet most of the
needs for communication between computers belonging to different
research organizations?
4. What is the best way to handle the fact that different modem
speeds have different prices? Should one strive for a standard
speed or can a wide variety be easily accomodated? Will buffer
computers that (for a price) mediate between installations
of different speeds develop?
5. How will the improved communication affect research? Since
changes will be slow, how can we tell as early as possible
what the effects will be?
6. What style of interaction is convenient for both experienced
and inexperienced users? How can communication programs be
made self-teaching without being cumbersome?
.cb Research Plan
We plan to undertake this project with rather modest staffing.
Initial emphasis will be on designing
and implementing experimental protocols using existing computer
facilities. We expect this initial development phase will take
about 6 months.
Once a working set of protocols is developed, an inter-center
implementation will be undertaken in cooperation with one or two
other university research groups.
From a programming efficiency
standpoint, it will be preferable to work with sites having similar
equipment. We will provide assistance to cooperating groups in
getting their versions running.
In the following six months, we plan to test, evaluate, and modify
the protocols.
During the latter
part of this period, we plan to publish the protocols and encourage
additional groups to join the Dialnet community.
.macro ref ⊂ select 3; nojust; boldit;
.CB References
.select 1; indent 0,8;
. ⊃
.
.macro boldit ⊂ turn on "%";
. at """" ⊂ (if thisfont=1 then "%3" else "%1") ⊃;
. at "<" ⊂"%2"⊃; at ">" ⊂"%1"⊃;
.⊃
.begin ref;
[1] Rubin, Jeff, "Computer Communication via the Dial-up Network",
<Minutes of the DECsystem-10 Spring-75 DECUS Meeting>, Digital
Equipment Computer Users Society, Maynard, Mass., 1975.
.end
.skip to column 1;
.cb APPENDIX A. Relevant Experience
The Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory has been active in the
development of remote terminal and data communication systems for a number
of years. SAIL staff members participated in the planning of the ARPA
Network and the SAIL computer facility (Appendix B) was among the early
systems in which the ARPAnet protocol was implemented (1972). Many of
the capabilities that we propose to make available through Dialnet
are available in some form in the ARPAnet.
A similar capability has been developed over a leased telephone line between
SAIL and the Institute for Mathematical Studies in the Social Sciences,
located several miles away on the Stanford campus.
Since 1974, the SAIL timesharing system has been fitted with
automatic dialing equipment in conjunction with Dataphone service, to
permit computer-initiated data communications with other computers.
This permits the SAIL computer to simulate the functions of
teletypewriter terminals, so as to access programs and data files in
external machines. This is the principal communication
technique that will be employed in Dialnet, although the protocols
will be substantially different for the sake of efficiency and
reliability.
The general problem of utilizing dial networks for computer communication
has been under study in the Laboratory for some time (e.g. [1]).
.cb APPENDIX B. Facilities
The computer facilities of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence
Laboratory include the following equipment, most of it purchased with
U.S. Government research funds. At present, we do not anticipate the
need for additional equipment to support this proposal.
.begin "facil" indent 0,10; nojust;
Central processors: Digital Equipment Corporation PDP-10 (KL-10 and
KA-10) and PDP-6.
Primary store: 512k words (36 bit) of 1 to 1.6 microsecond core
(DEC and Ampex)
Swapping store: Librascope disk (5 million words).
File store: Ampex disc file (3330-11 type), 6 spindles
(capacity: 7.8 x 10%59%* bits).
Peripherals: 4 Dectape drives, 2 mag tape drives (7 channel),
line printer, Calcomp plotter, Xerox Graphics Printer
Terminals: 58 Data Disc displays, 6 III displays, 4 IMLAC displays,
10 Datamedia displays, 15 Teletype terminals, 5 TI terminals
Realtime processors: DEC PDP-11/45 and SPS-41 with 8k words (16 bit) of core
and 197k words of Intel MOS memory.
Communications processor: BBN IMP (Honeywell DDP-516) connected to the ARPA
Network.
Special equipment: Audio input and output systems, hand-eye equipment
(4 TV cameras, 2 arms), remote-controlled cart.
.end "facil"
. << budget >>
.onecol
.cb APPENDIX C. Budget
Eighteen months beginning 1 January 1977. Estimated
salary increase is 6α% in second period.
.begin "budget" nofill select 4; turn off "%";narrow 10;
1 Jul.'76 to 1 Jul.'77 to
30 Jun.'77 31 Dec.'77
A. SALARIES AND WAGES
1.Senior Personnel
Professor John McCarthy
Principal Investigator - - - - - -
2..Other Personnel
a.Programmer
Martin Frost (50%) 6,150 3,260
b.Student Research Asst. 6,003 3,182
Acad. yr. 50%, Sum. 100%
c.Support Personnel
Secretary (10%) 1,423 754
______ ______
Total Salaries and Wages 13,576 7,196
B. STAFF BENEFITS 2,488 1,410
9/1/75 to 8/31/76:16%
9/1/76 to 8/31/77:18.8%
9/1/77 to 8/31/78:20% ______ ______
C. TOTAL SALARIES, WAGES,
AND STAFF BENEFITS 16,064 8,606
D. EXPENDABLE SUPPLIES 300 150
& EQUIPMENT(e.g., copying,
office supplies,postage,
freight,consulting,honoraria)
E. TRAVEL 1,300 700
F. PUBLICATIONS 500 500
G. OTHER COSTS
Telephone 200 100
______ ______
H. TOTAL COSTS (A through G) 18,364 10,056
.next page
I. INDIRECT COSTS (A through G) 10,590 5,832
56% through 8/31/76, then 58% ______ ______
J. TOTAL COSTS 28,954 15,888
______
______
Total Budget (eighteen months) $44,842
.end "budget"
.FONT 6 "NGR20"; SELECT 6
The source file of this document is DIALNE.PRO[E76,JMC]@SU-AI.