hide random home http://netspace.students.brown.edu/netspace/accounts.html (PC Press Internet CD, 03/1996)
NetSpace Services

NetSpace Services

It is NetSpace's goal to try to serve the Brown community in the best possible way. Since we have very little in the way of outside funding (read: none), we need to support ourselves as a group, rather than relying on outside help. To accomplish this goal, we ask users to make donations in return for services provided by NetSpace.

NetSpace now offers a modular system of providing services because the previous system (that of "User" and "Project" accounts) was not flexible enough to meet the needs of everyone interested in joining NetSpace. Each user may sign up for different services, each with its own cost. The services offered are listed below (donations listed are yearly unless otherwise noted).

The services we offer can be broken down into four groups:

All services except mailing list services require the use of a NetSpace login account.

Login Account Services

Login accounts: $30 for students and NetSpace alumni, $50 for faculty and staff
Simply put, an individual account is an account on our Unix server designated for use by a single person. The account remains active for one full year, including fall semester, winter break, spring semester, and summer break.

With a login account, you can send and receive email, read usenet news, use text-based or Xwindows gopher and WWW browsers, talk to other people on the internet using IRC and/or Unix talk, telnet to other sites, and in general access a very large variety of network services. Unfortunately, some services (like online research tools from Brown library) are unavailable from NetSpace. Other services, like Usenet News, require a valid Brown NetID and password.

You will have the ability to write (and compile if neccessary) your own programs in C, Pascal, Fortran, Perl, Rexx, and any of a number of shell scripting languages.

You are also given the ability to set up and publish your own World Wide Web homepage, and a set of sub-pages that go along with your homepage. These pages will be accessible to anyone on the internet who has a copy of Netscape or a comparable viewer. You'll also have access to a variety of tools available on NetSpace for text, graphics, and sound proccessing in order to make the development of WWW documents easier.

You will have 10 megabytes of disk space between your home directory and your WWW directory. This may be increased at the rate of $10 per 10MB. Your URL will be http://www.netspace.org/users/<name>.

There are a number of restrictions on what you can do with your NetSpace account. We suggest that you read them before paying for services. Be aware that there is NO ADVERTISING allowed on NetSpace.

NetSpace provides only a basic level of support for users. Generally, this means that the administrators won't do things for users that they have the ability to do themselves. While we will try and help as best we can when we have the opportunity, we can't guarantee that we will be able to do everything for everyone. Remember that the administration is made up of students at Brown that do have lives outside of NetSpace! For more information about support, see the FAQ.

Finally, you'll have access to a mailing list of other users of NetSpace, who can help answer your questions and possibly suggest new ways of publishing information.

Enable the emacs text editor: $30
In order to try and keep the load reasonable on the server, the popular emacs text editor is disabled for users (it uses more resources than you expect). A number of alternative editors, with nearly identical functionality, are available at no cost. However, if you feel you must use emacs, we will enable it for you for $30.

WWW/FTP/Gopher Services

Named WWW Directory Disk Space: $10/10MB
You may obtain disk space in the root WWW tree for $10 per 10 megabytes. This directory may be named whatever you want, and its URL would be http://www.netspace.org/<name>. This space is considered separate from the space associated with a user account.

Ability to run cgi-bin scripts: $10 per script*
NetSpace allows you to write your own cgi-bin scripts in the Perl programming language for use with forms and other special applications. The administration reserves the right to audit and/or restrict your script if there is a security risk.

*If you write a cgi-bin script for your own personal use, NetSpace asks that you pay $10 per year for the script to be enabled. However, if you write your script in such a way that any user of the NetSpace server can make use of it, then there is no cost, since you are doing a public service to the NetSpace community.

Icon and link on the NetSpace homepage: $10

FTP/Gopher Space: $15/15MB
You may obtain disk space for anonymous FTP and gopher for $15 per 15 megabytes. This directory may be named whatever you want, and its URL would be ftp://www.netspace.org/pub/<name>. This space is considered separate from the space associated with a user account.

Incoming FTP directory: $20
You may have an incoming anonymous FTP directory for $20. This allows anonymous FTP users to send files to you. Contents of this directory more than a week old will be deleted automatically. You must have FTP/Gopher space to have an Incoming FTP directory.

Mailing List Services

LISTSERV(tm) Mailing Lists: $5 with $5 setup fee
NetSpace owns a copy of the popular LISTSERV(tm) mailing list server written and donated to us by LSoft, Inc. You may run a mailing list from NetSpace for $5 per year. There is a one-time $5 setup fee. The NetSpace administration reserves the right to charge more for large lists that place a heavy load on the server; these will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Mailing lists don't require the use of a login account.

Mailing List Management: $10/month
The NetSpace administration will manage your NetSpace mailing list (act as list owner) for $10 per month. The number of months of support must be determined before payment and is billed yearly. This allows users who are unfamiliar with NetSpace or Listserv to start up a list but not have to worry about managing it for the first few months, then can take over when ready.

Other Services

Other services:
Organizations wishing to start a project on NetSpace may purchase multiple login accounts and allow each user to access common directory space, such as a root WWW directory.

NetSpace also offers a package deal for groups or organizations wishing to make use of our server. The following services are available as a package for $175 (roughly 20% off the current prices):

In order to sign up for an account, you need to read the NetSpace User Agreement and then print out the user form. Print out a copy of the form and fill it out (it should be pretty clear what goes where). Make sure to have all users of accounts sign in the appropriate places. Put it in a sealed envelope along with a check or money order for the appropriate amount. (or more, if you wish to make an extra donation), and a photocopy of some kind of identification (preferably student ID's for students) for each user. At least one user must be affiliated with Brown. Address the envelope as you would normally, with your return address in the upper left hand corner of the envelope. You can drop the envelope into Box 5 in the Student Activities Office in Faunce House. Your account will be set up as soon as your check clears, and you will be notified via email (or US Postal mail if email is not available) when your account is ready.

If you have any more questions, please send mail to Brian Fisk asking for more information.

Brian Fisk 10/3/95