| Rather than trying to force the client to use the server that you think
| would be best for it, it would seem better to provide data to allow the
| client to choose.
Yep, that would be great!
| i.e., the server could send out a Mirror: header containing a list of
| alternate 'mirror' URLs for the resource requested. The client can then
| select one of these based on knowledge of its local network. It could
| also try them in turn, selecting the fastest.
As you've noted, something along these lines has been mooted for
inclusion in HTTP 1.1. Perhaps the major browser developers will
move to support this quickly ? (Hello Netscape!) I hope so, but in
the meantime... :-(
Cheerio,
Martin