cTLD and DNS upgrade

[Brad Knowles]

At 5:09 PM +0200 2005-07-04, Stephane Bortzmeyer wrote:

>  * the root name servers operators (which is itself a very diverse
>  group, some are very good at communication with the community they
>  serve, like ISC for F, and some are very secretive),

	They've been doing a reasonably good job for the last twenty 
years or so, and I know enough about enough of them reasonably well 
that I'm willing to continue to trust them.

>  * ICANN,

	I don't trust them as far as I can throw the planet on which they 
exist, but I do trust that there are enough groups watching them that 
before they do anything too outrageous, I should hear about it. 
Assuming that the root operators themselves are not in revolt against 
ICANN, I can then revisit my choice of root server operators at that 
time.

>  * The US Departement of Commerce, which approves in writing every
>  change, whatever its importance, in the root zone file, and which will
>  continue to do so
>  (http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/USDNSprinciples_06302005.htm),

	I trust them even less than I do ICANN.  But otherwise, I trust 
that the situation will be much the same.

>  * Verisign, which generates the actual zone file and sign it.

	I don't trust the honchos at Verisign, they've seriously screwed 
us in the past.  But I do trust the technical people there.  Even 
now, they probably have more DNS clue than most any other group on 
the planet.

	When it comes to things that management decides to inflict on the 
rest of the world, I trust that I will hear about it soon enough that 
I can decide whether or not to revisit my choices of root server 
operators, or that "solutions" to their crap will be rapidly 
forthcoming from other parties that I do trust.

>  Technically, I have no doubt either. These people do very well their
>  technical job. But there are other things in the maintenance of the
>  root... (see the list above).

	Agreed, but I think that the risk of being screwed by the parties 
we don't trust is low enough and will have enough lead time that 
we're much better off sticking with them than any other alternative.

-- 
Brad Knowles, <brad at stop.mail-abuse.org>

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little
temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."

     -- Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), reply of the Pennsylvania
     Assembly to the Governor, November 11, 1755

   SAGE member since 1995.  See <http://www.sage.org/> for more info.