Request For Comments
RFC is an acronym for Request For Comments, which is a series of organizational and technical documents containing specification and policies pertaining to the different aspects of internet such as computer networking, protocols, procedures, programs, and concepts, meeting notes, opinions and even humor from the authors. RFC's are prepared by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), Internet Architecture Board (IAB) and the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF).[1]
History[edit | edit source]
The Information Processing Techniques Office (IPTO) funded a research on advance computers and network technologies during the 1960s which led to the development of ARPANET, the first wide area packet switching network or in simple words the first Internet.[2]
It was in 1968, when the ARPANET research was in full progress wherein researches and computer scientists meet regularly discussing the progress of their works, technical standards, internet design and architecture many other aspects of computer and networking. The Group called themselves as the Network Working Group. It was in February of 1969 during a meeting in Utah with the BBN when the Network Working Group realized that they need to start writing their discussions.
The term Request For Comments was first used by Steve Crocker when he volunteered to organize the notes written by the Network Working Group to give emphasis to their basic ground rule that anyone can say anything and nothing was official. Crocker wrote the first RFC entitled 'Host Software' on April 7, 1969.[3] Crocker was part of the UCLA Team along with Vinton Cerf, Jon Postel, Bill Naylor, and Mike Wingfield responsible in creating the protocols of the ARPANET which became the foundation of the internet today.[4]
The RFC became a very convenient and useful method in recording the all the details and technical information carried out by the Network Working Group in their research. The RFC became the official document of the Network Working Group.Jon Postel, Director of the Computer Networks Divison became the first editor of RFC Series. He was the RFC editor for 28 years. He was succeeded by Joyce Reynolds, who started working with Postel in editing the RFC's and managing the IANA since 1983. Other individuals who made important contributions to the RFCs are Robert Braden,Chairman of the IRTF End to End Research Group and Elizabeth Feinler, who lead the Stanford Research Institute Network Information Center (SRI-NIC) responsible in distributing the RFCs.[5]