Xref: utzoo comp.sources.d:1980 comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d:8
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!cmcl2!nrl-cmf!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!decwrl!nsc!voder!cullsj!jeff
From: jeff@cullsj.UUCP (Jeffrey C. Fried)
Newsgroups: comp.sources.d,comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d
Subject: Standard for file transmission
Message-ID: <292@cullsj.UUCP>
Date: 30 Apr 88 17:11:41 GMT
Organization: Cullinet Software, San Jose, CA
Lines: 21
Keywords: protocol compression source


   Currently there is an ongoing discussion in comp.binaries.ibm.pc.d 
concerned with establishing a standard for the exchange of software over 
the net.  I would like to offer a suggestion.  The following tools are 
available in source code format:  COMPRESS (Lem-Ziv text compressor), ARITH
(arithmetic compression for binary), UUencode/decode.  Since all of these
will run under a variety of environments (IBM-PC, AMIGA, ATARI, VMS, SYS5,
BSD), why not make these the basis for communicating.  I may have a public
domain SHAR/UNSHAR program in C as well (i do have a text archiver in PASCAL
as well that would suffice if PASCAL were acceptable to everyone).
   These should be enough to support everyone's needs, and because we have
the source, it can be made available to everyone.  I realize that some of
you may have a favorite tool which you may feel surpasses the capabilities
of these.  I am making these suggestions to provide a starting point towards
arriving at a mutually acceptable standard.
   For those who do not know, COMPRESS is a single file text compressor
which works faster than any of the ARC clones, and, ARITH is something i
constructed from a description in the ACM.  ARITH compresses slower, but
better, than huffman, ie., SQ/UNSQ.  Most of all its in the public domain
and i'll be posting source if enough people show an interest.
   In any case, let the discussion continue.