Xref: utzoo alt.sex.pictures:64 comp.os.os2:1623 Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!samsung!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!ira.uka.de!smurf!nadia!dialog!root From: root@dialog.stgt.sub.org (Christian Motz) Newsgroups: alt.sex.pictures,comp.os.os2 Subject: Re: encoding conventions--- please post nonstandard encoders Summary: While we're at it ... Message-ID: <1997@dialog.stgt.sub.org> Date: 2 Jun 90 15:36:19 GMT References: Sender: uucp@dialog.stgt.sub.org Reply-To: root@dialog.stgt.sub.org (Christian Motz) Organization: Dialog Software Development Lines: 56 In article mike@wang.com (Mike Sullivan) writes: >the subject and summary says it all... First of all I fully agree with Mike on the subject. If you must use a nonstandard encoding mechanism (i.e. one not in widespread use on UseNet), then at least show people the curtesy and post the source code for the decoder with the binary. In addition I think a lot of people would appreciate it the posters would use standard UseNet procedures for posting binaries instead of some weird methods used on other nets. Therefore, I would like to propose standardization of binary postings in the newsgroups that don't adhere to the established UseNet standards at the moment. If you have a binary to post, try compressing it with a standardized tool available on as many systems as possible. Use "compress", "zoo", "pkzip" or, if you must, "arc". These programs are available for almost all systems, so there shouldn't be a problem in unpacking them for most people. Next, "uuencode" the compressed binary. "uuencode" is probably the most commonly used binary-to-ascii-tool on UseNet (just look at most of the binary newsgroups). If you don't have a copy of the program, I am sure you can get one from a friendly UseNet administrator near you. It can be made to run on almost any machine, the source code is *VERY* portable. If the resulting file has more than 1000 lines (or, if you don' t want to count lines, 60 KBytes), split it up into multiple files. There will be a lot less problems if you do this, and might save the binary from being mangled at some sites. Most people have done this so far, but missed one small point that I would like to add -- this is also the reason why I have cross-posted this to comp.os.os2. Please create shell archives using the "shar"-utility from the split uuencoded files. The big advantage is that shar will also automatically extract the files as they were, without the need for loading the file in an editor, removing leading and trailing garbage like headers, signatures and so forth. Thus, binaries can be recreated from the postings almost automagically. This procedure is also used on almost all the binary newsgroups -- except, and this is my gripe -- on comp.binaries.os2 and here, in alt.sex.pictures. I hope that the moderator of comp.binaries.os2 and the people posting here consider this. It would make a lot of people very happy, I am sure. Thank you, readers of comp.os.os2, you may return to your regularly scheduled program :-) ... As for the people in alt.sex.pictures, I would like to make one last suggestion: let us elect GIF the file format of choice, rather than having a lot of different standards. I have an Amiga, but I would never dream of posting an IFF file, although I know there are IFF viewers for other machines. I think GIF will do just fine. But you already knew that, didn't you ;-). Thanks everyone for bearing with me up to this point ... (jd) -- Christian Motz root@dialog.stgt.sub.org