Michael Dillon's Web o' Wonder scenario keys on the ability of smart servers to do an application level re-direction of load to a topographically more appropriate server. Some of our customer's sites are doing a fair job of this by weighting DNS responses to geographically dispersed sites which, hopefully, are topographically dispersed.

Seems to me that this scenario would also benefit from a tool and database that could determine topological "closeness" even if it doesn't need to generate filter lists. If this scenario were easier to implement it could reduce the load of the major exchange points by encouraging traffic to stay closer to the network periphery.

The CACHE research efforts (see: http://www.nlanr.net and others) indicates that even greater reductions would be obtained if NSP/ISPs increase use of caches for www. Individual campus statistics, the NLANR prototypes, and statistics from CACHE sites deployed internationally suggest that orders-of-magnitude reductions in external network access [i.e. our backbone load] could be achieved. I am implementing a CACHE simply to improve on-net customer satisfaction. I expect the operational costs to be much less than the equivilent backbone or transit costs. If it has a side effect of reducting meet point traffic, then the entire net benefits. I wonder, how many nets would implement such as cache if the effect would be to reduce meet point traffic by orders-of-magnitude? ..mike.. Mike Trest, ATMNET Voice: 619 643-1805 5440 Morehouse Drive Fax: 619 643-1901 San Diego, CA 92121 Pager: 619 960-9070