Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!hplabs!hp-pcd!hplsla!davidr
From: davidr@hplsla.HP.COM (David M. Reed)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Smart Ascii
Message-ID: <5190015@hplsla.HP.COM>
Date: 26 May 89 17:40:23 GMT
References: <167@tdl.UUCP>
Organization: HP Lake Stevens, WA
Lines: 12

I wonder if the "Smart ASCII" is similar to what MicroSoft and others tout
as RTF (Rich Text Format).  This is supposed to be a method for saving a
document in plain ASCII format that will still contain most of your formatting
codes (bold, italics, indent, etc.).  From a MicroSoft document (Word 4.0
Application Note, dated 9/15/88):

   Rich Text Format (RTF) is a standard that makes moving text between
   applications easier.  With RTF, users can transfer text from one 
   application to another and not lose any formatting. ... Text and format
   instructions are saved in 7-bit ASCII format so that they are easy to
   read, easy to translate into other application formats, and can be sent
   over virtually any communications link.