Lessons Learned from the Internet Project

The Internet ranks among the greatest achievements of 20th century Computer Science. The basic technology was so well conceived that it has remained virtually unchanged despite completely new applications and dramatic growth in the number of connected computers and traffic. This eclectic talk presents a series of lessons drawn from the Internet experience that may help us better understand how to proceed with new research. It considers the design of protocols, general principles, technologies, the underlying architecture, the effect of economics on networking research, and ways that experimental research projects can be organized to ensure success.

Douglas Comer is VP of Research at Cisco systems, and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science at Purdue University, where he is currently on an extended leave. An internationally recognized expert on computer networking, Comer has been involved in Internet research since the late 1970s. His series of ground-breaking textbooks have been translated into 16 languages, and are used by professional engineers and students around the world. For twenty years, Comer was editor-in-chief of the journal Software -- Practice And Experience. He is a Fellow of the ACM.