Re: [idn] Some comments

[Dave Crocker <dhc@dcrocker.net>]

Folks,

We went been through this paradigm debate almost 10 years ago.

It was MIME vs. "just do 8-bit SMTP".

MIME was the right answer.  "just do 8-bit SMTP" was not.

The ACE approach is the same paradigm as MIME.

It is the right way to lay an encoding enhancement on an installed base, 
with the smallest amount of disruption.  It permits incremental adoption, 
with immediate benefit to participants in the enhancement, and no 
critical-path changes required of the infrastructure.  Changes to the 
infrastructure can then happen later and more liesurely.

d/


At 09:23 AM 1/14/2001 +0100, Patrik Fältström wrote:
>At 23.57 +0000 01-01-13, D. J. Bernstein wrote:
>>Patrik writes:
>>>  I don't want 8-bit clean protocols, and UTF-8. I want protocols which
>>>  can handle UCS-2, UCS-4 or UTF-16
>>UTF-8 is compatible with ASCII. UCS-4 is not.
>
>Depends all on how you define "compatible", and no, you don't have to 
>explain because I know what you are thinking of. We don't agree here. It's 
>as simple as that.
>
>>Switching a protocol to UTF-8 preserves compatibility; ASCII data is
>>unaffected. Switching a protocol to UCS-4 destroys compatibility; ASCII
>>bytes turn into 4-byte sequences.
>And?
>Was it not a long-term, "correct", solution you wanted?

=-=-=-=-=
Dave Crocker  <dcrocker@brandenburg.com>
Brandenburg Consulting  <www.brandenburg.com>
Tel: +1.408.246.8253,  Fax: +1.408.273.6464