North American Network Operators Group

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Re: SWIP update intervals (was: Re: Getting an AS and /18)

  • From: Bohdan Tashchuk
  • Date: Tue Jul 03 15:32:27 2001

> ...and while we're on the subject of SWIPs, can I get a pet peeve off my 
> chest - the fact that RADB entries are updated in minutes, yet it takes 
> typically 24 hours or more for a SWIP database change to show up in the 
> servers (and the next day to even determine that the change was accepted 
> by the servers)? Is there any real reason for ARIN to not be able to 
> update the database in near-real-time?

The problem is that none of these organizations have any real incentive
to care. They're all "monopolies".

For example, recently NetSol updated whois database at 2AM on 6/28/01
and didn't bother to update again until 6PM on 7/2/01. Approx. 112 hours
later. There are a LOT of things that depend on whois. But, despite
language at icann.org web site that says

	NSI Registry Agreement
	(form approved 4 November 1999)

	9. Publication by NSI of Registry Data.

        (A) NSI shall provide an interactive web page and a
	port 43 Whois service providing free public query-based
	access to up-to-date (i.e. updated at least daily)
	registry database data

NetSol obviously doesn't give a damn about whether or not whois is up to
date. They don't have to. Their lucrative monopoly was recently extended
for many more years.

Unfortunately I don't know of a simple way that databases like these can
be maintained without relying on a monopoly organization doing the
actual work. It's just something you need to learn to live with.

Nothing described similar monopolies better than Lily Tomlin's memorable
character Ernestine the telephone operator:

	We're the phone company.
	We don't care, we don't have to.