Thanks to Greg Broiles for the information on UUNET. I ftp'd some info from ftp.uu.net as he suggested. Here is an edited version of one of their main info files. I have left in the part relevant to UUCP connections. I would comment that this looks like it would not be an economical approach for providing an anonymous posting service. The volume experienced by these services has been very high. Greg indicates that he gets about 700 chars per second for his link. Any posting or remailing request is going to have to be transmitted twice (once in, once out). At $2.47 per connect-hour we're talking about $2.00 per megabyte posted or remailed. I believe Julf has seen several megabytes per day. So this volume will push the bill up to the range of hundreds of dollars a month. This is pretty expensive just to support truth, justice and the American way on the net. (This could be reduced if large messages were filtered, but I don't know if UUCP allows for a way to filter incoming messages so you don't get billed for them. After a while, though, if people learned that large messages don't get remailed, they might stop sending them. OTOH, the operator of this service would be vulnerable to mail bombs by those opposed; the bombs would land right in his wallet.) Info from UUNET, edited, follows below. Hal 74076.1041@compuserve.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------- UUNET offers access to: * UUCP mail - Over 2,000 direct mail connections - UUNET is an authorized Internet mail gateway, and can act as your Internet mail forwarder. - UUNET serves as the principal gateway to European, Australian Asian, Indian, and South American UUCP sites. * USENET news - UUNET offers a full or partial news feed; all news groups are offered. - Over 1,000 news feeds [...] WHICH ACCESS METHODS ARE AVAILABLE? * From within the United States: - Dial your closest CompuServe network access number (local from thousands of US cities). You are then connected to UUNET via the X.25 public data network. No registration with CompuServe is necessary. - Direct dial modem at our Austin, TX; Berkeley, CA, Boston, MA; Falls Church, VA; Palo Alto, CA; Portland, OR; and San Jose, CA hubs. - 800 number - 900 number for anonymous access to our archive * Connection Methods - UUNET supports all standard modems (V.32 / V.22bis / Bell 212A / Bell 103) - For those of you with UNIX platforms, you only need the standard UNIX uucp programs. For those with non-UNIX platforms, software is available through commercial vendors. * Modem Types - UUNET uses Telebit T2500 Modems - We support Telebit PEP / 9600 V.32 / 2400 / 1200 / 300 bps [...] HOW DO I SUBSCRIBE TO UUNET? We have several subscription options for users with different needs. The options and pricing are described below. Call us and ask for the General Information Packet on UUNET and AlterNet. Fill out the UUNET Subscription Form and send the original in to us! Subscription options are: * Regular uucp Our basic service which provides email and news connectivity for $36 per month plus your connect hours. Charges for connect hours are listed below. RATE TYPE RATE LESS 5% MINIMUM _____________________________________________________________________ Local Inbound (per hour) | $2.60 | $2.47 | 1 min. Local Outbound (per hour) | $2.60 | $2.47 | 3.6 min. | | | Remote Inbound (per hour) | $5.60 | $5.32 | 1 min. | | | Compuserve Modem (per hour) | $5.60 | $5.32 | 1 min. | | | Inbound (800) and Outbound WATS Daytime | $16.00 | $15.20 | 1 min. Inbound (800) and Outbound WATS Evening | $13.00 | $12.35 | 1 min. Inbound (800) and Outbound WATS Night | $10.00 | $9.50 | 1 min. -------------------------------------------------------------------- * Low-volume Users All sites are entitled to three connect hours per month for an annual fee of $300, paid in advance. Customers may connect via local dialup, remote dialup, or the CompuServe remote network (CompuServe charges are included in the fee). In addition, customers may use UUNET's 800 number for an additional $180 per year (total $480, paid in advance). Restrictions - Sites exceeding three connect hours will be charged at regular UUNET rates for the entire monthly usage, not just the excess. This includes the $36 administrative fee. - The yearly fee is non-refundable and will not be prorated for partial months. - This offer is only available in the continental USA and may be withdrawn at any time. [...] WHO DO I CONTACT WITH QUESTIONS? Please contact us and ask for Customer Support. WHERE IS UUNET? The address is: UUNET Technologies, Inc. 3110 Fairview Park Drive, Suite 570 Falls Church, Virginia 22042 USA +1 800 4UUNET4 (voice) +1 703 204 8000 (voice) +1 703 204 8001 (fax) info@uunet.uu.net