Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!julius.cs.uiuc.edu!ux1.cso.uiuc.edu!mp.cs.niu.edu!rickert
From: rickert@mp.cs.niu.edu (Neil Rickert)
Newsgroups: comp.mail.misc
Subject: Re: Which headers may Sendmail re-write?
Message-ID: <1990Dec11.130432.27684@mp.cs.niu.edu>
Date: 11 Dec 90 13:04:32 GMT
References: <208@frcs.UUCP> <1990Dec5.150355.23457@mp.cs.niu.edu> <27640C8A.1A46@tct.uucp>
Organization: Northern Illinois University
Lines: 29

In article <27640C8A.1A46@tct.uucp> chip@tct.uucp (Chip Salzenberg) writes:
>The Great Header Rewriting Debate breaks down along the same lines.
>No one can reliably know the form of all addresses that will be
>accepted as valid on another person's machine.  If one neighbor site
>generates addresses that cannot be understood by another neighbor
>site, what business is that of yours?  Correct answer:  "None."

 In principle, I agree.  In practice ...

 I will get rid of all code in my version of sendmail that touches
headers just as soon as:

	1.  Vendors stop creating and distributing software that
	    routinely sends out mail with incorrect header addresses -
	    usually headers with unqualified domain names.

	2.  All such broken software is replaced on existing machines.

	3.  UUCP addressing protocols are changed to fully support
	    domain style addresses, and all UUCP users stop using
	    bang addresses.

 Fat chance.

-- 
=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
  Neil W. Rickert, Computer Science               <rickert@cs.niu.edu>
  Northern Illinois Univ.
  DeKalb, IL 60115.                                  +1-815-753-6940