Re: [ga] Letter to Dr. Vint Cerf

[Kent Crispin <kent@songbird.com>]

On Tue, May 08, 2001 at 06:59:59PM -0400, L Gallegos wrote:
> Once more, Kent. The DNS is singular.  Roots are not.  Roots are not 
> the name space.  DNS is.  Most of the kids in school can think that 
> through.  

The technical means by which the singularity of DNS is
enforced is through the use of a single root (currently under the
authority of the USG).  The is explicit in the design of dns; it has
been reiterated many times.  

Please note that it is the use of alternate roots and TLDs that is the
fundamental problem: if you use alternate roots with alternate TLDs you
can *never* be sure that you won't get polluted by someone else's
alternate root and TLD of the same name -- they don't have to tell you
about it; you don't have to know that it exists; it doesn't have to be
publically advertised.  The conflict Jefsey describes with the two
versions of .biz exists independent of whether one of them is in the
real root -- two alternate root zones that don't know about each other
have precisely the same problem; there is no distinguishing
characteristic of the real root that sets it apart.

To put it in other words, if you use a .biz in an alternate root, you 
run the risk of colliding with someone who, deliberately or 
accidentally, sets up a .biz in another alternate root, and they don't 
have to tell you about it.  The only way you can guarantee to avoid 
such conflicts is to avoid using alternate roots.

-- 
Kent Crispin                               "Be good, and you will be
kent@songbird.com                           lonesome." -- Mark Twain
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