Announcement: Multicast WWW (MCWWW) BOF at Memphis IETF

Please find below information on the Multicast WWW BOF 
which will take place at the Memphis IETF meeting on 
Wednesday, April 9 from 15:45 - 16:45. 

If you are interested in presenting as part of the BOF agenda,
please send mail to me as soon as possible, describing your
desired presentation and how long it will take. 

Bernard Aboba
MCWWW BOF Chair



Multicast WWW BOF (mcwww)

Wednesday, April 9 at 1545-1645
===============================

DESCRIPTION:

Many Web sites that distribute popular, frequently updated content
experience problems with "flash crowds": thousands of access per
minute to the same Web page overload the Web server or the network
link leading to the server. Moreover, with the increasing growth
of "push" technology, it is likely that these problems will get worse,
not better. 

It is possible that integrating IP multicast with the transport 
protocol used by the Web (HTTP) may be used both to solve serious 
existing operational problems like "flash crowds", and to avoid 
creating new problems due to "server push" applications. Several 
applications (i.e. cache stuffing) appear to be naturally amenable 
to use of unreliable multicast. Thus, moving ahead on unreliable 
webcasting will serve to advance these applications as well as to 
potentially provide short-term solutions for other applications.

The primary goal of this BOF will be to see if there is enough
agreement on the problems to be solved, and enough interest in 
moving forward to form a working group on the subject of unreliable 
multicasting of Web content. 

AGENDA:

1. Agenda bashing
2. Review of existing uses of multicast to support the World-Wide Web
3. Discussion of potential areas for standardization
4. Indication of interest
5. If sufficient interest, discussion of working group prerequisites:
    a. Charter
    b. Chair
    c. Mailing list
    d. FTP site
    e. Requirements document
    f.  Review of existing implementations

Received on Thursday, 3 April 1997 01:47:48 UTC