Outside the Beltway

Comments

1. anjin-san says:
   Sunday, 20 October 2013 at 14:21

   The myth of “AlGore says he invented the internet” is still around?

   Al Gore and the Internet

   By Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf

   Al Gore was the first political leader to recognize the importance of the Internet and to promote and support its development.

   No one person or even small group of persons exclusively “invented” the Internet. It is the result of many years of ongoing collaboration among people in government and the university community. But as the two people who designed the basic architecture and the core protocols that make the Internet work, we would like to acknowledge VP Gore’s contributions as a Congressman, Senator and as Vice President. No other elected official, to our knowledge, has made a greater contribution over a longer period of
   time.

   Last year the Vice President made a straightforward statement on his role.
   He said: “During my service in the United States Congress I took the
   initiative in creating the Internet.” We don’t think, as some people have
   argued, that Gore intended to claim he “invented” the Internet. Moreover,
   there is no question in our minds that while serving as Senator, Gore’s
   initiatives had a significant and beneficial effect on the still-evolving
   Internet. The fact of the matter is that Gore was talking about and
   promoting the Internet long before most people were listening. We feel it
   is timely to offer our perspective.

   As far back as the 1970s Congressman Gore promoted the idea of high speed
   telecommunications as an engine for both economic growth and the
   improvement of our educational system. He was the first elected official
   to grasp the potential of computer communications to have a broader impact
   than just improving the conduct of science and scholarship. Though easily
   forgotten, now, at the time this was an unproven and controversial
   concept. Our work on the Internet started in 1973 and was based on even
   earlier work that took place in the mid-late 1960s. But the Internet, as
   we know it today, was not deployed until 1983. When the Internet was still
   in the early stages of its deployment, Congressman Gore provided
   intellectual leadership by helping create the vision of the potential
   benefits of high speed computing and communication. As an example, he
   sponsored hearings on how advanced technologies might be put to use in
   areas like coordinating the response of government agencies to natural
   disasters and other crises.

   As a Senator in the 1980s Gore urged government agencies to consolidate
   what at the time were several dozen different and unconnected networks
   into an “Interagency Network.” Working in a bi-partisan manner with
   officials in Ronald Reagan and George Bush’s administrations, Gore secured
   the passage of the High Performance Computing and Communications Act in
   1991. This “Gore Act” supported the National Research and Education
   Network (NREN) initiative that became one of the major vehicles for the
   spread of the Internet beyond the field of computer science.

   As Vice President Gore promoted building the Internet both up and out, as
   well as releasing the Internet from the control of the government agencies
   that spawned it. He served as the major administration proponent for
   continued investment in advanced computing and networking and private
   sector initiatives such as Net Day. He was and is a strong proponent of
   extending access to the network to schools and libraries. Today,
   approximately 95% of our nation’s schools are on the Internet. Gore
   provided much-needed political support for the speedy privatization of the
   Internet when the time arrived for it to become a commercially-driven
   operation.

   There are many factors that have contributed to the Internet’s rapid
   growth since the later 1980s, not the least of which has been political
   support for its privatization and continued support for research in
   advanced networking technology. No one in public life has been more
   intellectually engaged in helping to create the climate for a thriving
   Internet than the Vice President. Gore has been a clear champion of this
   effort, both in the councils of government and with the public at large.

   The Vice President deserves credit for his early recognition of the value
   of high speed computing and communication and for his long-term and
   consistent articulation of the potential value of the Internet to American
   citizens and industry and, indeed, to the rest of the world.
2. rodney dill says:
   Sunday, 20 October 2013 at 15:06

   …that would’ve solidified the ‘twit’ part.
3. Argon says:
   Sunday, 20 October 2013 at 16:09

   I still haven’t figured out the hype behind Twitter. Now, RSS is something I really like but Twitter? Meh. It’s neither productive nor interesting enough for me.
4. Matt says:
   Sunday, 20 October 2013 at 20:55

   @anjin-san: Indeed Al Gore never really got the credit he deserves for his help in the advancement of the early stages of the internet.

   Instead he has to deal with the bullshit “AL GORE INVENTED TEH INTERWEBZ!!!”..
5. Franklin says:
   Monday, 21 October 2013 at 10:04

   @anjin-san: Judging by the lone downvote, somebody’s imaginary world just got a little more real. Or maybe they’re still in denial.
6. Rick Almeida says:
   Monday, 21 October 2013 at 12:36

   @Argon:

   Seriously. Even more high-frequency, low signal to noise ratio communication? No, thank you.
7. bill says:
   Tuesday, 22 October 2013 at 01:14

   if he bought twitter it would have died of boredom and some other form would be used- i don’t do twitter so whatever.

   @anjin-san: are you super cereal?! well he did help invent man made global warming…..as long as he could line his pockets and maintain his exorbitant carbon footprint (like any limousine liberal would) – what a douche.
8. Tony W says:
   Tuesday, 22 October 2013 at 15:22

   @bill: As usual you demonstrate for us that facts to Republicans are as useful as violins to a canary.