Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!news.nd.edu!mentor.cc.purdue.edu!sage.cc.purdue.edu!ericm
From: ericm@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Eric Mulholland)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
Subject: Re: binscii (was GIF pics at)
Message-ID: <12246@mentor.cc.purdue.edu>
Date: 13 May 91 03:48:40 GMT
References: <Tabakal@UB.CC.UMICH.EDU> <9105111730.AA08829@apple.com> <1991May12.190918.6252@nevada.edu>
Sender: news@mentor.cc.purdue.edu
Organization: Purdue University Computing Center
Lines: 27

In article <1991May12.190918.6252@nevada.edu> alfter@nevada.edu (SCOTT ALFTER) writes:
>In article <9105111730.AA08829@apple.com> MQUINN@UTCVM.BITNET writes:
>>I move that we start using .BNS for 'binscii/shrinkit' files considering
>I thought .BQY was the standard suffix for squeezed Binary II stuff.
>
>to replace BinSCII with uuencode and uudecode, now that someone has
>seen fit to port those utilities to the II.  On the other hand,

Actually, it would be nice for binscii to move in uuencode's world.
The nice things about binscii are:  Better character set used.  Ever
look at what uuencode puts out?  More symbols than letters.  Binscii
takes the benifit of using all the letters and than only requires two
additional characters.  I remember the author sending out a test
message to see which characters got eaten the least.  Binscii also
sends the decoding alphabet along with the file, so those computers
along the way that love to translate one character for another don't
mess up the file.

What would be great to solve the binscii suffix war is for when version
2.0 comes out, if it will give a default suffix.  That is the most likely
way to set a standard.  I'm looking forward to the time when the author
(can't reliably remember his name) gets time to finish it and distribute it.
-- 
      ____
  Y_,_|[]|   Eric Mulholland
 {|_|_|__|   ericm@sage.cc.purdue.edu
 //oo--OO    ...!pur-ee!sage.cc!ericm