network-v1/README.md

network-v1

A source-backed address book and evolving map of the organizations, coordination systems, datasets, and infrastructure that make the global Internet work.

Round 1 status: ecosystem baseline, verified 2026-07-20. This is not yet an exhaustive directory of every carrier, exchange, cable, data center, or national regulator.

Start here

1. Read the first-round investigation.
2. Browse the human-readable address book.
3. Browse the range-based registry-ips/ and its complete IANA IPv4 index, covering every top-level IPv4 /8 plus all IANA special-purpose IPv4 prefixes.
4. Start the exact-address map with 0.0.0.0 and 1.1.1.1.
5. Use data/entities.csv and data/ip-addresses.csv for machine-readable records.
6. Review the next research round and IP network roadmap.

What “global network” means here

The repository begins with the public Internet as a network of networks:

• governance and unique-identifier coordination;
• standards and protocol development;
• number-resource registries;
• DNS and root-server coordination;
• interconnection, routing, and measurement;
• physical transport and submarine-cable information;
• operational and security coordination.

It deliberately maps institutions and trusted public directories before attempting to enumerate individual people. Public role-based contact points are preferred over personal details.

Repository map

.
├── README.md                   # orientation and status
├── address-book/              # concise human-readable directories
├── data/                      # canonical entity and IP address datasets
├── docs/                      # scope, method, findings, taxonomy
├── registry-ips/              # range-based global IP knowledge registry
├── research/                  # unanswered questions and next rounds
├── scripts/validate.py        # dependency-free data/link-shape checks
├── sources/                   # provenance policy
├── CONTRIBUTING.md
└── Makefile

Quick commands

make validate
make summary

Research principles

• Prefer primary, official sources.
• Record when a source was checked.
• Distinguish verified entries from hypotheses and leads.
• Describe roles neutrally; do not imply hierarchy where the Internet has none.
• Keep the prose useful to humans and the CSV useful to tools.
• Never publish private or sensitive contact details.

License

Repository content is provided under CC BY 4.0. Individual linked sources retain their own terms.