Latest development of the Internet in Mainland China

In March 1994, China was formally connected to the Internet via the Institute of High Energy Physics network. The National Computing and Networking Facilities of China received the country-level domain name '.cn' in May 1994. This article outlines the historical development of the Internet connection in China. Many universities and institutions are now connected to the Internet. Library catalogs, e.g., Peking University Library, are accessible through national networks including the ChinaNet and the China Education and Research Network. These national networks are the gateway to the global information highway. Internet services such as e-mail, Telnet, FTP, Archie, Usenet (listservs), Gopher, WHOIS, and WWW, are available on the Internet in China. Global Internet users can subscribe to several Chinese electronic magazines published in China. The Chinese government has established an office, the State Information Coordinative Committee, to oversee the development of the Internet in China. Cooperation is called for among the various network systems, and a high speed network is needed to further develop the Internet connection in China. More users are expected to have access to this information superhighway. In fact, the number of Internet users in China may increase exponentially in the next few years. Training on the use of the Internet is needed and should be provided by the library and information professions, and educational institutions.EI03159-1701