I'm working on finding the optimum places  for the  lists and listservs, so
I need to find out the method listserv uses while distributing the messages
across the network. I mean the details, how DISTRIBUTE  chosses  the paths.
 
Up to now, I developed simple  programs  which  divides a list into two  by
taking the user's sites into consideration, and a program  that  calculates
the network cost of a list, with the  distribution method  now used. But  I
realized that, in the DISTRIBUTE algorithm, backbone sites play an important
role. So I wondered what will be the network cost  when  the number  of the
backbone sites increase. It came up that, the network cost will decrease but
the amount of decrease is due to the backbone sites. But there are still some
points, which  are  unclear  because  of  the  lack of my  knowledge  about
DISTRIBUTE.
 
So, I would be happy if anyone who is interested in this subject or has already
worked on it, tells his ideas and discuss it.
 
                                           Thank you in advance
 
                                            Yasemin Topaloglu