09/24/86 20:22:56,2308;000000000000
Date: Tue, 14 Jan 86 12:16:47 EST
From: "Glenn S. Burke" <GSB@MC.LCS.MIT.EDU>
Subject: arpanet policy
To: NIC@SRI-NIC.ARPA, jeff@AIDS-UNIX.ARPA
cc: ARPANET-BBOARDS-REQUEST@MC.LCS.MIT.EDU
Message-ID: <[MC.LCS.MIT.EDU].783572.860114.GSB>

    Date: Wed 18 Dec 85 13:00:13-PST
    From: DDN Reference <NIC@SRI-NIC.ARPA>

    Hello,

    I  received this message in NIC mail. Since you have this wonderful
    BBoard that you monitor, I was wondering if you could assist me in
    providing some information to this user. What guidelines do you
    follow? Have you ever received any kind of official policy statement
    from DARPA pertaining to bboard conduct? I sure would appreciate any
    information that you can give.

    Regards,
    Nan for the NIC
                    ---------------

    Date: Mon, 16 Dec 85 13:48:23 pst
    From: jeff@aids-unix (Jeff Dean)

    is there a document that describes the policies
    about what the arpanet should and should not be used
    for?  i am particularly interested in the policy with
    respect to bulletin board postings.
    thanks...

    	jeff dean
    -------

I have never received any policy guidelines.   Once a long time ago i
asked for some opinions, and never received any replies.  Basically, i
refuse adverts for obviously private companies, things which are
inappropriate to the community (i.e., of local interest only), or
queries better handled by some specific mailing list.  The original
intent of arpanet-bboards was for conference announcents and the like,
but then people started sending job-opening things;  mostly i hemmed
and hawed and decided it was easier to send them as long as they
didn't seem to violate any personal-gain type of precept (which i have
never heard formally stated) -- i.e., if they were universities or the
government itself (Army, Navy, NSA, etc.).  If ever the volume got too
large, i would consider refusing job-position ads.

In answer to unasked questions, if AIDS were to send out either job
position or product advertisements, i would refuse to forward them.
Of course, i don't know the policy by which places such as AIDS get to
be directly on the arpanet.

I think one of the places i may have asked for policy guidance years
ago was nic@nic...
