Compound document should be just one content type. If you are not
satisfied with the existing standards (oda or whatever), start by all
means designing a new exchange standard for them, but don't sink MIME
with this.
Keep MIME *mail* stardard that can transport various content types.
Layout issues don't belong to mail specification, they belong into
the content.
Maybe allow that "content disposition" hint, but stop there. This talk
about "unpacking" andrew/oda/slate compound documents into mail format
is rather scary trend.
--
Markku Savela (savela(_at_)tel(_dot_)vtt(_dot_)fi), Technical Research Centre
of Finland
Telecommunications Laboratory, Otakaari 7 B, SF-02150 ESPOO, Finland
ps. I posted this into info.ietf.smtp, but I guess it does not get into
mailing list from there, at least haven't seen it and it has been
18 hours now...
pps. Now.. reading the text, after 18 hours.. the tone is a bit sharp.
It does wonders to sleep before replying, but I decided to mail
the original content as it was :-). Basicly, I like MIME and I am
getting a bit worried about it getting too complex for wide
implementation.