Re: HTTP Futures

Fisher Mark (FisherM@is3.indy.tce.com)
Tue, 6 Dec 1994 17:49:48 +0100

Richard L. Goerwitz writes in
<9412061540.AA01495@mithra-orinst.uchicago.edu>:
>>the point is adults should use their own crap detectors rather
> ^^^^^^
>>than having their government decide for them what is and is not
>>worthwhile entertainment.
>
>Yes. But another, equally valid, point is that adults are not the
>only ones on the net.

I agree. That is why a mechanism at the browser end for restricting
available material is (IMHO) a good idea. It lets parents and others acting
in loco parentis (teachers, day care providers, etc.) block material that
the children under their care are not ready for yet. As a parent myself, I
would really like this.

Governments, however, should not be in the business of deciding what
material is suitable for whom. By extension, the government should not
restrict the flow of information at either the source (the content or
Internet provider) or the sink (mandated "SOAP by the US Dept. of Education"
on every browser that is child-accessible, anyone?); this is the job of the
parent.
======================================================================
Mark Fisher Thomson Consumer Electronics
fisherm@indy.tce.com Indianapolis, IN

"Just as you should not underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon
traveling 65 mph filled with 8mm tapes, you should not overestimate
the bandwidth of FTP by mail."