26 votes

Vint Cerf, a father of the internet, retires from Google

3 comments

  1. [3]
    teaearlgraycold
    Link
    When I worked there I wanted to know if it was possible to build a comprehensive map of the Internet. Someone heard me discussing this and mentioned that Vint Cerf worked at the company and might...

    When I worked there I wanted to know if it was possible to build a comprehensive map of the Internet. Someone heard me discussing this and mentioned that Vint Cerf worked at the company and might know. So I DM’d him on Google Chat and he responded with a message about how he didn’t design the Internet to be measured like that but the best tool available would be BGP forwarding tables. I made sure to forward that email to my personal address when I quit.

    19 votes
    1. [2]
      thereticent
      Link Parent
      That's quite a privilege. Have you done anything with that suggestion, or anyone else that you know of?

      That's quite a privilege. Have you done anything with that suggestion, or anyone else that you know of?

      4 votes
      1. teaearlgraycold
        Link Parent
        He mentioned someone at Georgia Tech that was working on mapping parts of the Internet. I emailed the guy but we never got around to a video call. I also talked with a Google engineer responsible...

        He mentioned someone at Georgia Tech that was working on mapping parts of the Internet. I emailed the guy but we never got around to a video call. I also talked with a Google engineer responsible for the company's internal network map - something I could see in real time for myself. He was a very friendly Australian guy and loved the idea of building a broader map. My mad scientist idea (which they'd never approve) was to turn all Android devices into a botnet, periodically trace-routing connections and sending that up to a centralized server.

        8 votes