Early experiences with the Arpanet and Internet in the United Kingdom

The paper describes both the administrative and technical backgrounds to the establishment of the first international Internet node-from its beginnings as a single Arpanet node to the main early link between the Internet and the UK National Research Network. It gives an overview of some of the technical accomplishments of the early years and of the services offered. It reviews how certain political and governmental decisions affected its management and location and draws some conclusions from the experiences.