Douglas Earl Comer is a professor of computer science at Purdue University, where he teaches courses on operating systems and computer networks. He has written numerous research papers and textbooks, and currently heads several networking research projects. He has been involved in TCP/IP and internetworking since the late 1970s, and is an internationally recognized authority. He designed and implemented X25NET and Cypress networks, and the Xinu operating system. He is director of the Internetworking Research Group at Purdue, editor of Software - Practice and Experience, and a former member of the Internet Architecture Board.

Presentations

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Software Distribution Now And Then: Why And How The Internet Changed Everything

Imagine transferring data and software from one computer to another in the 1970s, before the Internet.  What media could one use, and how did transfers occur?  This talk provides a glimpse into the technology of that world, and highlights how it affected the process of software transfer.

The advent of the Internet completely changed software transfer and enabled the open source movement.  The increased speed of transfer only forms part of the story.  The talk will outline significant advances that the Internet introduced, and describe how they enable the efficient software distribution scheme that we now enjoy.

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