Remembering Jonathan B. Postel

IANA Press Release

Dr. Jonathan B. Postel, director of the Computer Networks division at the
Information Sciences Institute (ISI) of the University of Southern
California, and director of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, passed
away Friday, October 16th, in Los Angeles.

Dr. Postel received his B.S. and M.S. in Engineering, and his Ph.D. in
Computer Science from UCLA. He was a member of the Association for
Computing Machinery and the Internet Society, and served on the Internet
Society Board of Trustees. He was awarded the International
Telecommunication Union's silver medal in 1998 for his central role in the
success story of the Internet.

At UCLA, he was involved in the beginnings of the ARPANET and the
development of the Network Measurement Center. He worked in the areas of
computer communication protocols, especially at the operating system level
and the application level. His other interests included multi-machine
internetwork applications, multimedia conferencing and electronic mail,
very large networks, and very high speed communications.

He was also involved in several Internet infrastructure activities
including the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), the RFC Editor,
the US Domain, and the Los Nettos network (a regional network for the
greater Los Angeles area).

One of Dr. Postel's many accomplishments was to establish the Internet
Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) which acted as the Internet's central
coordination, allocation, and registration body for addresses, names, and
protocol parameters since the early days of the Internet. In parallel with
the rapid expansion of the Internet in recent years, he expanded the staff
of IANA and strengthened IANA's traditional consultative and advisory
support from other groups. Characteristically, as the controversies over
Internet management unfolded, he chose to expose himself to those
pressures, rather than risk disrupting the ability of the IANA staff and
supporting groups to do the work that was, and remains, critical to the
stability of the network.

Jon Postel was one of the most respected and loved members of the Internet
community. His unassuming devotion, and technical wisdom, for an
unglamourous but critical job that allowed the Internet to function and
grow was met with standing ovations and unparalleled loyalty.

Dr. Postel saw the successor organization to IANA incorporated and
structured as the result of discussions and input from a wide range of
Internet stakeholders. He believed this organization would provide for the
long-term smooth operation of IANA's responsibilities without his being
directly and heavily involved.

Jon Postel helped to create the Internet. The privatization of the Internet
into a stable international organization to carry his work is a testimony
to his outstanding contribution to our current information society.

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                         Page Updated 20-October-98.