Path: utzoo!mnetor!tmsoft!torsqnt!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!thunder.mcrcim.mcgill.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!usc!wuarchive!udel!haven!adm!cmcl2!uupsi!sunic!isgate!krafla!heimir
From: heimir@rhi.hi.is (Heimir Thor Sverrisson)
Newsgroups: comp.text
Subject: Re: International character set requirements needed
Message-ID: <2566@krafla.rhi.hi.is>
Date: 24 Dec 90 01:34:13 GMT
References: <1990Dec17.210354.1626@cbnewsl.att.com> <7625@castle.ed.ac.uk> <1990Dec20.012516.23623@ico.isc.com>
Organization: University of Iceland
Lines: 19

In <1990Dec20.012516.23623@ico.isc.com> rcd@ico.isc.com (Dick Dunn) writes:

>			There are some methods of
>data interchange, such as most email systems, that are inherently 7-bit.
>It would be nice if we could just banish them, but compatibility is an
>albatross.

There is nothing that tells me that email systems should be _inherently 7-bit_.
In fact here in Iceland we have to hack almost every piece of communications
software to be able to use it in our _inherently 8-bit environment_.  This

I can see no reason at all for some stupid mailers to strip off the eighth bit
(including Interactive's version of sendmail).  They don't have to - and should
not - interpret the contents of the mail they are transmitting.  This is
quite different from the troff situation where a program has to know a lot
about it's input set.  So why don't you guys simply open up your mailers
and be ready with a 8-bit clean version by the end of 1991!
--
Heimir Thor Sverrisson			heimir@rhi.hi.is