>In other words:  outbound FILES go to  BITNET, outbound MAIL goes  to the LAN,
>correct? Well I can have several RSCS  as well as several MAILERs and only one
>of each set can  be the networking machine. So why not  give LISTSERV a MAILER
>which sends by default to BITNET?
 
Ask Princeton.
 
>I  still  don't  understand  how  [log in to unmask]  can  subscribe  as
>'JOE@RIGEL' - other than with two RSCS which will give a mess anyway.
 
With a M A I  L E R. He does not even have  RSCS access. Within the local
domain,  the local  domain suffix  is  implied, so  that as  I have  said
JOE@RIGEL is, by definition,  [log in to unmask] The MAILER LISTSERV
is using is a local one,  so when [log in to unmask] sends a request,
the  mailer sends  it  as JOE@RIGEL  to  LISTSERV. But  this  is a  LOCAL
problem, it does  not prevent people from a  perfectly legally registered
BITNET node from getting mail depending on the phase of the moon. It will
not cause anybody to stop using DIST2, it is not *my* problem.
 
>If you  tell RYERSON to "get  yourself a decent  MAILER" then you can  as well
>tell whomever  "configure your networking  software properly".
 
Sorry but that's  something different. If a MAILER  can't handle .BITNET,
it  won't survive  long  in  this network.  I've  been  in Princeton  and
discussed this problem, among other things,  for a couple days, and I can
tell you that there is no such simple solution, with today's software, as
"install MAILER release x.y" or "change one line in the tables".
 
>I  remember the
>V*X-clusters  sending with  the clustername  as nodeid  swallowing the  user's
>V*X-nodeid and then complaining "you must  send to the individual node not the
>clustername" when getting something back.
 
I fail to understand the relevance of this.
 
>Yep, but need  it be .BITNET ?  :-). At least it's not  a domain specification
>but an "address-space" and somewhat redundant. And it originates from software
>which first sees the local network and everything else as special case.
 
I really don't  understand that. What should I use,  if not .BITNET? Some
sites do have a valid official domain address, like CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU. What
should I  do about the  large majority of  sites which don't?  Generate a
random one?  Wait until everybody on  this network has one  (I'll be dead
well before it  happens)? Move to a bank or  insurance company and forget
about all this nonsense?
 
  Eric