[JDEV] Cool article in Yahoo/ZDnet

[Anders Qvist]

On Fri, 19 May 2000, Eric Bowersox wrote:

> That's the one major inaccuracy in this article.  AFAIK AOL has not (yet)
> tried to block any instances of the ICQ or AIM transports from connecting to
> those respective networks.

Out of curiosity, how would they go about blocking Jabber servers? I mean,
obviously, if they find a server, they can always block its IP, but how
are they going to find them? aim-t emulates a bunch of clients, right? How
is the aim-t machine different from an address translating firewall?

Some methods:

* Looking through the web and news archives trying to find names/IPs of
  Jabber server. "Welcome to Whack-a-jabberwock, mr AOL. Insert dime to
  start game!"

* Looking in their log files for machines that make large number of
  connections. Trying to differentiate these from corporate/ISP address
  translating firewalls will be a real hassle.

* Trying to look for machines in the "vicinity" of Jabber servers. Since
  Jabber and AIM transports can be placed on different IPs, this has the
  potential to more harm than good.

* Dispatching lawyers at anyone they can find in order to intimidate the
  rest. Good luck, AOL. If you ask me, US lawyers is one deterrent weapon
  which is quickly loosing its value from overuse.

* Trying to identify protocol differences between aim-t users and their
  own clients and reject those that looks. Beating an opensource team at
  that game should be reasonably tough.

Some of these methods may scare a few ISPs into not adopting aim-t, but I
don't think it'll be worth it in the long run.

Muahaha! A cunning plan forms. What if aim-t transports were to announce
themselves via JUD? Then a blocked aim-t could forward its AIM messages to
another aim-t *at random* which then made the connection to AOL. As long
as a handful of servers exist, everyone would have service.

Anders "Quest" Qvist
NetGuide Scandinavia

And we who listen to the sky, or walk the dusty grade,
Or break the very atoms down, to see how they are made,
Or study cells, or living things, seek truth with open hand;
The profoundest act of worship is to try to understand.

-- Catherine Faber, "The Word of God"