Re[2]: Life after PMMail

[Simon Bowring]

</TongueBite>
On Mon, 27 Mar 2000 15:52:18 +0200, Xavier Caballé wrote:

>And that's the reason because I need to properly view/edit HTML mail
But there is *no definition whatsoever* on what "properly view/edit" 
means in the context of an email program!!!!

I would have no objection to someone proposing a "simple rich text
markup language for email", and these proposals becoming an internet
standard, but this has not happened! 

Until such standards exist (and one based on HTML probably
*never* will because it is so unsuitable for rich text mark-up, 
and the IETF and other internet standards bodies are not so 
dumb as to deliberatly propose a complex and unworkable engineering 
"solution"), all you can do is hope or make sure that the person at 
the other end has the same email package as you - this is no better 
(indeed it's worse) than making sure they have the appropriate PDF 
viewer or word processor!

MS (and NS) are trying to force "the world" into using their 
own software precisely by embracing and EXTENDING (i.e. "breaking") 
the rules in this fashion - trouble is they don't even make email 
programs for the "world" which extensively uses OS/400, MVS, many 
version of Unix, PalmPilots, Psions and other PDAs, mobile phones,
iphones, NCs and all the other platforms that send and receive 
millions of emails everyday. These millions of (business and technical) 
users, simply don't exist!

The average Windows user hasn't got any idea that the same bloated
set of incompatible features isn't available to every user, why 
should they? The twats that create software like this and ship the 
misfeatures enabled by default need educating using a sharp stick 
and bits of their own soft tissue!

Perhaps we need to enshrine internet standards in international law, 
so that  deliberatly producing software that breaks them is a 
"hangin' error"!

Simon
<TongueBite>