Re: Mailing list for cryptography

[tcmay@netcom.com (Timothy C. May)]

Rishab Aiyer Ghosh writes:

> "Perry E. Metzger" <perry@imsi.com>:
> > I'm thinking (again) about setting up a specialized mailing list for
> > discussing cryptography...
> 
> While I agree with Perry's implication that the CP list does tend to go off
> track rather often, it _was_ set up specifically to bring together the
> social and technical aspects of cryptography, and does generate useful 
> discussion on occasion ;-]
> 
> If you want to discuss only cryptography, there's always sci.crypt...
> 

Not to mention "sci.crypt.research," a moderated group which was just
approved and should appear soon.

I wish Perry well, but I personally think there are already too many
newsgroups, mailing lists, and Web pages out there. I'd rather see
people reading the crypto literature ("Paper rulz!") than getting on
so many mailing lists and other forums.

I know of at least several crypto groups (not counting PGP per se),
several PGP groups, several "security" groups, and half a dozen
mailing lists on "digital money" in one form or another (IMP-Interest,
EDI, NetCommerce (or somesuch), LibTech, AltInst, etc.).

Personally, though I'm biased, I think Cyhperpunks has show itself to
have the staying power and overall size and depth of knowledge that
most of these other groups have lacked. 

Surprisingly, there is no Usenet group devoted to digital money, no
"alt.e$" or "alt.netcash." A better idea might be "sci.econ.????,"
where the "????" is something appropriate. (I say "sci." because
sci.econ and sci.econ.research already exist, not because I believe
economics is a science.)

--Tim May


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