Kazu Yamamoto (=?iso-2022-jp?B?GyRCOzNLXE9CSScbKEI=?=)
<kazu(_at_)iijlab(_dot_)net> writes:
There are still many non-MIME UA users.
Yea, but we're defining a MIME type. We can't be defining MIME types
for people who don't use MIME. For example, the sender doesn't know
that the recipient does not understand MIME, and if they did they
shouldn't be sending MIME in the first place. Sure, we can TRY to be
as compatible with non-MIME-mailers as we can, but I don't believe
that we should bend over backwards just to make it easier for them,
when quite frankly those non-MIME users wont be able to read many MIME
messages in the first place.
BTW, do you know any region where base64 is actually used for
text/plain? If we use base64, readability becomes drastically poor.
Yes. I've been receiving messages from someone in, I believe, Korea
(I don't have the mail in front of me, but I seem to recall it was a
.kr address) who has been sending me English text/plain using base-64
encoding. Quite annoying, I must say. But it's still being done.
Why? I don't know. What if I couldn't read it? The sender probably
has no choice in the matter. Is their mailer non-conformant? I don't
know. But honestly, if they tried to sign their base-64 message, then
what? Well, if I couldn't read MIME, I couldn't read their original
message anyways, so what does it matter?
For example, Chinese people uses GB-2321 character set, which is 8bit
and base64 is suitable if required. However, they tend to send GB-2321
text with CTE: 8bit (without base64) for readability. (Most SMTP
channels in Asia are 8bit clean.)
I'm currently of the mind that we should not require base-64 encoding,
but we should encourage base64 encoding. Basically if you, as a
sender, know that you have an 8-bit clear channel to your recipient
you should be allowed to send an 8-bit message. However, if you are
not sure you have an 8-bit channel then you should base-64 encode your
message. I just wish there were an easy way to determine ahead of
time if there is an 8-bit clean channel.
--Kazu
-derek
--
Derek Atkins, SB '93 MIT EE, SM '95 MIT Media Laboratory
Member, MIT Student Information Processing Board (SIPB)
URL: http://web.mit.edu/warlord/ PP-ASEL-IA N1NWH
warlord(_at_)MIT(_dot_)EDU PGP key available