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From: libes@nbs-amrf.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.lan
Subject: Re: ASN.1, ANSI/ISO dIs 8824, CCITT X.409
Message-ID: <241@nbs-amrf.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 5-Apr-86 12:42:37 EST
Article-I.D.: nbs-amrf.241
Posted: Sat Apr  5 12:42:37 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 9-Apr-86 20:51:05 EST
References: <220@nbs-amrf.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: National Bureau of Standards
Lines: 40

> ASN.1 ("Abstract Syntax Notation") is the common name of ISO dIS 8824,
> also a dpANS, and formerly promulgated as CCITT recommendation X.409.
> 
> I am looking for an implementation of the above draft standard.
> Has anyone done one?  It doesn't have to be complete.

Thanks to those who answered and told me that NBS has such an
implementation (and not being too disparaging about not knowing
what's available from my own employer).  I checked it out yesterday
and came away with the following comments:

It was done under contract by BBN.

It consists of a preprocessor that takes the grammar definition and
converts it to C code, with the type definitions corresponding
closely to C structures.  You can then make calls such as
"parse...", handing it a value, and it will give you back an
encoded byte stream.

And vice versa.  Values are expressed in display format, using
braces to separate fields, and including field names.

The person showing it to me suggested it was too slow to be of
actual use to anyone, but I'm not interested in performance so I'll
give it a shot.  (Besides, they were only running it on a VAX.  :-)

If you want to get a tape, you should contact NTIS, (301) 487-4650.
It is available at minimal cost.  The person at NBS who is in
charge of it is Jerry Mulvenna, (301) 921-2601.  The person at BBN
who wrote it is APOPE@BBN-UNIX.


I was also told that the following companies have implementations
(which may or may not be commercial products):

ITI: David E. Morgan (313) 665-4610
RETIX: 1547 Ninth Street/Santa Monica/CA 90401


Don Libes      {seismo,umcp-cs}!nbs-amrf!libes