Apologies in advance for cross-posting. Analysis of network traffic on the Internet has shown that significant savings can be made if local caches are introduced and these are linked to form a "caching hierarchy". Much work has been carried out on the development of caching software and many institutions and networks already implement caching at various levels. It is vitally important to coordinate the construction and maintenance of these caching hierarchies and, after being approached by various bodies, TERENA has decided to investigate the possibility of setting up a caching task force. Note that the technology for caching is being developed elsewhere and is therefore not the subject of this initiative. Rather, TERENA intends to promote the usage and coordination of caching at the local, national and international level to produce a more efficient, cost-effective and above all reliable service for the users of research networks in Europe. The objectives of this task force are therefore initially: i promote and coordinate the deployment of caching hierarchies in Europe ii linking these with initiatives in the US (NLANR) iii coordination with other work on caching in Europe (DESIRE, INSIGHT, etc) iv providing documentation, information and assistance for those wishing to start a caching service though these are, of course, subject to change if the task force so decides. As a kick off, we have created a task force mailing list for those interested. If you would like to join, send a message to: mailserver@terena.nl containing only the text: subscribe tf-cache Your Real Name replacing "Your Real Name" as appropriate. Alternatively, if you already have a national-level mailing list and would prefer to add this, please send a message to tf-cache-request@terena.nl. TERENA task forces and working groups are open to all. Please contact me if you have any queries/comments or see http://www.terena.nl/tech/projects/choc/ for more details. Feel free to forward this to any parties you think might be interested. Regards, John Martin TERENA