Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uunet!snorkelwacker!usc!orion.oac.uci.edu!ucivax!gateway
From: bannon@osage.csc.ti.COM
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.iso.x400
Subject: Re:  ISO/CCITT meeting report, Munich July 1990
Message-ID: <9008152255.AA26808@osage.csc.ti.com>
Date: 16 Aug 90 02:53:24 GMT
Lines: 50
Approved: usenet@ICS.UCI.EDU


from: Mark Horton <mark@cbmark.cbcc.att.COM>:
>
>  Visual representation of OR-addresses
>  -------------------------------------
>
>  Three formats had been compared:
>
>  (a) ...
>
>  (b) An abbreviated labelled format, something like this:
>
>  C=SE; ADMD=TEDE; PRMD=QZ; GN=John; SN=Peterson
>
>  (c) A very concise format, something like this:
>
>  John/Peterson//QZ//TEDE/SE
>


For what it's worth, my $0.02 on X.400 addressing:  From what I percieve as
being proposed as required address formats for input by humans to send mail
to other humans it is *completely ridiculous*.  For use by computers, fine.
Humans???  Wake up.  It looks like something a first year CS student would
hack up for one of his projects.  Something quick and dirty just to get
the interface done so he/she could concentrate on the project internals.

In my view electronic mail addressing formats should converge to those
used to address ordinary physical mail, the kind you put stamps on and
put in the mail box on the corner.  If my grandmother is going to be able
to send email to my mother, it had better be pretty close, if not *completely*
inter-changeable with the mail addressing she already knows how to do.  What
is this "C=SE; ADMD=TEDE; PRMD=QZ" garbage anyway?  My god, this is terrible!!

Supposedly in the not too distant future we'll all be linked up via high speed
data channels from fiber and satellite networks.  At that time the ratio of
ordinary people vs. all us university, government, & corporate computer types
using systems such as email will probably be something like 10000:1 and
growing.  Do you see ordinary people getting into "C=SE; ADMD=TEDE; PRMD=QZ"?

Well, perhaps I'm way off base here, and X.400 is not expected to be any
kind of a major player in the real world.  But you get my drift.  Some
serious human interface work will be required in this area.

Tom

Information Technologies Laboratory
Computer Science Center
Texas Instruments, Dallas
bannon@csc.ti.com