I wondier if the cost to keep one's computer running all the time is worth
the savings of a free Internet account.  As they say, there is no free
lunch.

kelly 


>FEBRUARY 02, 15:49 EST
>
>Juno Announces Web Service Plan
>
>By ANICK JESDANUN
>AP Internet Writer
>
>NEW YORK (AP) — Juno Online Services Inc. may require subscribers of its 
>free Internet service to give up additional control of their computers, 
>prompting
>complaints about privacy and security risks.
>
>Juno, which now compels those users to view ads and share marketing data, 
>wants to raise additional revenues by selling unused processing power from 
>subscribers'
>computers to research institutions and corporations.
>
>In such a scenario, Juno software would run whenever subscribers leave 
>their computers idle for a given period of time. The software would 
>operate much
>like a screen saver and halt when the subscriber resumes computer use.
>
>New terms posted on Juno's Web site in recent weeks and publicized by the 
>company on Thursday give Juno the right to require new and existing free 
>Internet
>subscribers to leave computers on around the clock.
>
>A user's computer could even be programmed by Juno's software to 
>automatically call Juno's systems with computational results if the user 
>does not access
>the service frequently enough.
>
>Users would have to pay for electricity, computer maintenance and in some 
>cases long-distance telephone charges. Juno and its partners would keep 
>any profits
>if the computations generate anything of commercial value.
>
>Richard Smith, chief technology officer for the Privacy Foundation, has 
>qualms about opening up computers this way: ``How do I know somebody isn't 
>messing
>with my data?''
>
>``I have concerns about how well their customers will be aware of what's 
>going on,'' he added.
>
>In announcing the Juno Virtual Supercomputer Network initiative Thursday, 
>chief executive Charles E. Ardai called it ``a way to derive new forms of 
>revenue
>from assets we already have.'''
>
>Purveyors of free Internet access have struggled as revenues from online 
>ads dwindle.
>
>In December, online search portal AltaVista cut off some 3 million users 
>from its free service. NetZero, Juno and BlueLight.com are the only major free
>services remaining, and Juno hopes to remain so. But the company has yet 
>to show a profit.
>
>Juno claims more than 14 million registered users, 4 million of which it 
>says log on at least once a month. They include the free users and those 
>who pay
>for premium services.
>
>The Juno initiative is a form of ``distributed computing,'' a way of 
>breaking complex tasks into smaller pieces that individual computers can 
>work on. It
>is already done on a volunteer basis by astronomy buffs probing for 
>extraterrestrial life.
>
>Ardai said the company has not secured any deals yet to sell its 
>supercomputing services, but he envisions signing up biotechnology 
>companies as customers.
>
>Demand for such computational power is expected to grow rapidly as the 
>budding field of bioinformatics takes off. Bioinformatics, which requires 
>massive
>number crunching, is the use of computerized databases to help scientists 
>decipher genetic information needed to combat disease and prolong life.
>
>At first, Juno's supercomputer network will be tested using volunteers. 
>But if Juno needs more computing power, said spokesman Gary Baker, the 
>company may
>require it of the heaviest users or of all users of the free service.
>
>Subscribers would have the option to upgrade to a paid service to avoid 
>the requirement.
>
>George Kurtz, chief executive with security company Foundstone Inc., said 
>that while Juno's service appears free, ``you're paying for the service 
>with privacy.''
>
>Kurtz is concerned about what might be monitored on a subscriber's 
>computer, how that information might be used and, from a security 
>perspective, what kind
>of code would be run.
>
>Bruce Murphy, chief executive of another security firm, Vigilinx, warned 
>of ``electronic Armageddon'' if malicious software is distributed despite 
>Juno's
>best intentions.
>
>Baker said Juno would institute unspecified safeguards to prevent its 
>partners from commanding computers inappropriately. He also said Juno had 
>no interest
>in snooping.
>
>``This system is designed to use the processing powers of these computers, 
>and not to look at hard drives, read cookies or do anything of malicious 
>fashion,''
>Baker said. ``These things are not required to do what we need to do.''


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