How many ISPs are out there?

Tue Jul 24 07:25:01 UTC 2001

    > > I was actually thinking along IAP (Internet Access Provider) lines. But,
    > > most folks lump ISPs and IAPs in the same breath.
    >
    > Ouchie. I've always heard IAP as "Internet Applications Provider" -- the
    > exact opposite in most senses of an access provider. TLA collision ...

"Internet Access Provider" is the generally-accepted expansion of the
acronym.  IAP, ISP, and NSP were the abbreviations used in the NII, the
National Information Infrastructure document in which the original NAPs
were formed and the NSFNet backbone was phased out of production use.

                                -Bill