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Joshua Allen wrote:
>...
> That wasn't the question, though -- the question was about why you would
> characterize DNS as "centralized" and Google as "decentralized". I
> don't think that's a defensible characterization, and in fact is
> backwards in spirit.
Okay, let me be more precise: Google is the most popular index over the
World Wide Web, which is a decentralized system, without any central
runtime control. Google's implementation is centralized but it holds no
central position in the Web architecture and can be ignored by any web
user at any time without systemic breakage.
DNS is the _only_ index over the "Domain Name System" system which is a
federated implementation of a database controlled by a single
organization: ICANN. The implementation is federated but it has an
official, central role in the Internet architecture. It cannot be
ignored without serious client-software breakage.
Paul Prescod
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