Re: <nettime> BECAUSE DATA CAN BE PLACED EVERYWHERE

[mf@mediafilter.org (MediaFilter)]

>BECAUSE DATA CAN BE PLACED EVERYWHERE
>
[...]
>So, what happening now is, three big projects is going down one after another,
>Documenta_x website, Remote_C project on Ars Electronica server and now it
>seems than RIS is getting down on ICF server. Of course it's normally,
>everything is in changes and in movement, just speed is growing day by day,
>but I remember very nice discussions in different conferences about
>archiving,  saving and so on, but  now it seems I can trust more so called
>'commercial' servers because those people are earning their money with this
>and they are not erasing my work at least. Otherwise this nicest network
>gives you just different kinds of errors :) , which is also quality of the
>Internet :)
>

[...]

Dear Raitis,

it is for this reason that I first proposed the creation of
the "Permanent Autonomous Net" in Amsterdam in 1996, which
evolved into the Name.Space project.  The purpose, to create
a self-sustaining, self-funding economic infrastructure where
we can pay for our connectivity and hardware so we can keep
our content alive and online.  The only way to assure our
continued presence online is to buy the bandwidth and run
our own nets.  The other phase, as well represented in your
model of X.change, is to mirror content, and support projects.
To this end, to achieve this with sustainability, we need to
provide hosts for our content on many, decentralized,
artist-run servers that are self-sufficient,
to be supported through income earned from Name.Space.

The disappearance of the sites you mention are just a few
examples of how temporary and fragile our access really is
in terms of serving non.commercial content and making it
visible.  We can't rely on the art institutions, as their
agenda is their OWN survival and image, and not the survival
of the artists that they purport to represent.  The essential
problem of the art institutions and museums is that they
regard art as PROPERTY and value it even higher than the
life of the artist.  (the value of the property goes UP
upon the DEATH of the artist...so don't count on the
institutions supporting the artists' life!).

The danger of commercial services as a threat to
free expression lurks in the ability of private networks
to censor content.  Unlike the public streets, commercial
services are private property and, at least in the USA,
there is no constitutional protection for free speech on
private property.  So I can modify the above statement
to read: The only way to assure our continued UNCENSORED
presence online is to buy the bandwidth and run our own
nets.

Let's work together in the coming year to achieve this.

Best wishes,

Paul Garrin





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