Will_It_Be_FREE_Tomorrow

Will It Be FREE Tomorrow? The Internet was first conceived as a "Galactic Network" in a series of memos, written by J.C.R. Licklider of MIT in August 1962. Licklider envisioned a globally interconnected series of computers through which anyone could quickly access data and programs from any site. This was the "seed" which allowed the beginning of a long process of experimentation and development that has evolved and matured the Internet concepts and technology we take for granted today. By 1985, the Internet was already well established as a "new" technology that could support a broad community of researchers and developers. This was made greatly possible by the military that fundamentally wanted a "communications" system that could operate even in a wartime environment. Other government agencies also recognized the potential of the Internet. And, that communication ability, was beginning to be used by other groups for simple daily computer communications - Electronic Mail, better known to all of us as email. Our federal agencies shared the cost of common infrastructure, such as the all important transoceanic circuits which allowed the "network" to be truly global. They also jointly supported "managed interconnection points" through which networks connect to other networks and pass on info from one to another. Perhaps this helped to foster the Internet Spirit of the FREE exchange of information and ideas. This concept of FREE is as fundamental to the Internet as air is for us to breathe. And for a good many years you were able to get just about anything Internet related for free. However, with the recent demise of so many dot.com players, the pendulum is attempting to swing in the other direction. This week another major player has announced that their once free service will no longer be free as of August 6th. If you have a list hosted on ListBot, http://www.listbot.com/, you will either need to make new arrangements to get it hosted by someone else or get ready to hand over around $150 per year. What was once free yesterday may no longer be free tomorrow. Considering the need to become profitable online, the trend is understandable. However, these dot.coms that are charging fees must keep in mind the free nature of the Internet and not ignore the fundamental nature of that concept. Yahoo, http://www.yahoo.com/, is an excellent example of a dot.com that began to charge fees but not for it's core service of search engine directory use. Yes, if you want preferential treatment in getting listed on Yahoo you need to hand them almost two hundred dollars for the privilege. And, yes, they are "selling" you something on every web page that comes up with the results of your online search. It pays the bills and still allows them to keep their original service free. A compromise must be reached otherwise those faltering dot.com's and any Johnny come lately will find that in order to keep the good will of their customers and potential customers, they must be given an incentive merely to visit the web site. Otherwise they will look elsewhere to still find it free. About the author: A.T.Rendon is an entrepreneur and published writer. Subscribe to FREE Business Classifieds Newsletter & receive FREE online access to our Password Protected "FREE Submit To Over 2.6 MILLION FREE Ad Sites!" mailto:subscribe_fbcn9@emailexchange.org Visit us at:http://emailexchange.org/?articles