Steps Toward a National Research Telecommunications Network Available to Purchase

In response to provisions in Public Law 99–383, which was passed 21 June 1986 by the 99th Congress, an inter‐agency group under the auspices of the Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and Technology (FCCSET) for Computer Research and Applications was formed to study the following issues: the networking needs of the nation's academic and federal research computer programs, including supercomputer programs, over the next 15 years, addressing requirements in terms of volume of data, reliability of transmission, software compatibility, graphics capabilities, and transmission security; the benefits and opportunities that an improved computer network would offer for electronic mail, file transfer, and remote access and communications; and the networking options available for linking academic and research computers, including supercomputers, with a particular emphasis on fiber optics. Bell reports on the process and recommendations associated with the committee's work, and suggests a means for accomplishing the network objectives addressed by its report.