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2014 Inductee

Susan Estrada

2014 Inductee Susan Estrada
Internet Hall of Fame Pioneer, 2016-2018 Advisory Board Member
Estrada founded CERFnet, one of the original regional IP networks, in 1988. CERFnet served the academic and commercial communities in California. As executive director, she took the initial National Science Foundation funding of $2.8 million and grew the network from 25 sites to hundreds of sites.

CERFnet was a particularly visible network because of Estrada’s success in using a small amount of resources to achieve early commercial acceptance of the Internet.  CERFnet developed a number of notable firsts for the Internet, including the first deployment of dialup IP, accounting reports for customers, and high quality service with 24/7 monitoring.

Through her leadership and collaboration with PSInet and UUnet, Estrada helped form the interconnection enabling the first commercial Internet traffic via the Commercial Internet Exchange.

Estrada was the recipient of the Interop Achievement Award in 1991.

In 1993, she wrote ‘Connecting to the Internet, An O’Reilly Buyer’s Guide’, a Barnes and Noble bestseller. In it, she gives practical advice on how to get the best Internet service. She maintains a deep interest in emerging Internet technologies and making those technologies work to solve real-world problems.

As an entrepreneur running Aldea Communications for over 20 years, Estrada continues to consult on Internet infrastructure and to investigate technologies and techniques needed to increase older-adult use of the Internet.

Watch an interview on her contribution.

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