A salute to the Free University of Berlin

Freie Universität Berlin was founded in 1948 by students and academics upset by the encroaching communist influence on German universities. Its title as a "Free" university relates to the western "free world," as opposed to the eastern, soviet-controlled bloc. Today it is one of the largest and most prestigious universities in Germany.

You might know them better from a site they run, namely, ftp://ftp.fu-berlin.de/pc/games/idgames/ .

In 1995, the Free University of Berlin was one of many universities around the world to establish a mirror of the /idgames FTP archive for Doom files. As the millennium draw to a close and other university mirrors disconnected from the network, however, the Free University of Berlin persisted - until 2000 or 2001, around the time of ftp.cdrom.com's demise, when they delinked from the network for unknown reasons.

It could have passed into history as just another defunct university mirror, but then in 2005, the Free University of Berlin once again became an official mirror, which it remains to this day.

It is one of only 5 mirrors to ever hold the designation of a "Primary" mirror. Around 2010, when the number of /idgames mirrors dipped to a dangerous low of 3, it was very possibly the linchpin that prevented the whole thing from collapsing for good.

It is also the longest-lasting of any /idgames mirror, having been active for 15 years.

I have no idea who our benefactor at the university is, but to them I say: Veritas, Iustitia, Libertas!

Hear, hear!

Linguica said:

I have no idea who our benefactor at the university is,

Maybe we should send them an email, then. Perhaps we can order them pizza or something.

Good job, fu-berlin.

They got a cool logo of a bear about to eat an icecream cone of fire.

Salute!

I agree that they need some sort of gift. A token of our goodwill and gratitude. Maybe a visit from Hissy and free pizza.

ahaaa, so this is the "fu-berlin". Very cool!

My hat is off to you, Free University of Berlin. Thank you.

Any of the German Doomers from Berlin should do something.

Is it really a good idea to bring attention to this? If some Paragraphenreiter in the university administration finds out that computer resources are being used for something other than official revenue-making business, there's a high chance that they will get it shut down. Doubly so in this case, considering that some of the content (Nazi imagery and/or extreme interactive violence) might not even be legal under German law.

Fredrik said:

Doubly so in this case, considering that some of the content (Nazi imagery and/or extreme interactive violence) might not even be legal under German law.

Violence should be no problem since Doom was re-rated USK16. Swastikas and SS runes on the other hand would, even if they aren't related to nazis.

I was born in Berlin. I feel the responsibility to go back there for a couple of days and hug the University.

Those guys make me proud. I mean i have nothing to do with that. But it still makes me proud. :)

I made my M.A. at the FU! Didn't knew they hosted a server for Doom files all the time :)

*Salutes the Free University of Berlin...* :)

Danke schön

Loben Freien Universität Berlin.

Prost!

Hail!