All:
The DNS is indeed defined as a hierarchical tree and thus must
have only one root. It will not work with more than one root.
What Richard and Stef are saying, in short, is in agreeement with
that in the sense that they recognized you would need an *additional*
control structure in order to use multiple roots AND the DNS.
But, adding multiple roots will NOT do away with the single root --
as Brian noted. That additional control structure for the "multiple
roots" must still be controlled by someone -- and here is where we
go back in a circle, Brian notes.
However, what Richard is saying would create a delegation mechanism
to the root, for those who want to use it. Those who do not want to use
it, would still see only the DNS root. Richard is not solving the DNS
control problem, he is just proposing a way to create a delegation
mechanism that is entirely optional for the user to see.
That said, this logic implies that operators of root A cannot complain if
operators of root B define a TLD that conflicts with a TLD in root A.
Thus, operators of an alternate root cannot complain if the DNS operators
add .BIZ to the DNS TLDs and control it. An alternate root operator could
also add .COM to their namespace and control it. Operators of intranets
do it all the time.
Cheers,
Ed Gerck