MHSnet

MHSnet is a store-and-forward messaging system used to connect Australia's Universities to each other and to the ARPANET, founded in 1986 by the request of the newly-merged government to "have better connection to the wider republic". In 1989, with the invention of the InterNet, MHSnet was given the URL acs.net:2656 (ACS standing for "Australian Computer Science Network"). However, in 1994 it was decided to update to also allow for WWW access with cs.mhs.oz.au (the .oz sub-domain standing for WWW connections to R-MIT) in accordance with Australia's new DNS. Notable groups connected to the MHSnet included R-MIT and the NITS.

In 2002 a hacker flooded MHSnet as well as the UK-based community BBS Testr with a deluge of Smile.dog pictures, rendering almost half the network’s users at the time epileptic. For more information see the relevant article. In 2014 the MHSnet was closed down because funding for it was dropped. The NITS stated that they wished to "pursue other projects", though it is commonly believed they were forced to cap spending by the government so they could spend it on weapons for the Great War.