Xref: utzoo news.groups:2379 comp.arch:3273 sci.math:2736 sci.math.stat:260 sci.physics:2798 sci.astro:1779 comp.lang.c:6929 comp.lang.fortran:379 comp.lsi:318 sci.math.symbolic:213
Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!mcnc!gatech!purdue!spaf
From: spaf@cs.purdue.EDU (Gene Spafford)
Newsgroups: news.groups,comp.arch,sci.math,sci.math.stat,sci.physics,sci.astro,comp.lang.c,comp.lang.fortran,comp.lsi,sci.math.symbolic
Subject: Re: comp.numeric deferred; try Stanford NA list
Message-ID: <3079@arthur.cs.purdue.edu>
Date: 1 Feb 88 13:50:36 GMT
References: <40114@sun.uucp> <1116@hao.ucar.edu> <959@luth.luth.se>
Sender: news@cs.purdue.EDU
Reply-To: spaf@uther.cs.purdue.edu.UUCP (Gene Spafford)
Organization: Department of Computer Science, Purdue University
Lines: 24

In article <959@luth.luth.se> sow@cad.luth.se (Sven-Ove Westberg) writes:
 >In article <1116@hao.ucar.edu> woods@hao.UUCP (Greg Woods) writes:
 >
 >>>	na.problem@score.stanford.edu
 >
 >>This is a hideous address to use. There should NEVER be periods in the local
 >>part of an address. Many mailers will be confused by this. The user name
 >>(the part to the left of the @-sign) should be a single token. Maybe THAT'S
 >>why we never see any articles! :-)
 >
 >READ RFC822 Page 27. !!!!
 >Periods is allowed in the local-part in RFC822, period.

I'm sure Greg has read RFC822.  He didn't say that it was illegal to
use a period to the left of the @ sign -- simply that it should not be
done because some mailers get confused.  Unfortunately, not every
mailer strictly implements 822 (or 976) addressing, and some will do
the wrong thing when presented with an address having a "local part"
with a period in it.  Attempts should also be made to avoid using "%"
and "!" symbols in mailbox names for similar reasons.
-- 
Gene Spafford
Dept. of Computer Sciences, Purdue University, W. Lafayette IN 47907-2004
Internet:  spaf@cs.purdue.edu	uucp:	...!{decwrl,gatech,ucbvax}!purdue!spaf