Re: [WinMac] Cross-platform email

Blake Lange(blange[at]fec.gov)
Mon, 21 Dec 1998 12:43:02 -0500

     I now see where the confusion lies, I think. The point I was making is
that in practice when one chooses the type of encoding for an attachment
when send a file from the MacOS platform the common choices are:
--BinHex,
--Base 64,
--UUEncode,
--AppleSingle, and
--AppleDouble,
and when one selects Base 64 only the data fork is encoded and sent, while
when one selects AppleDouble two files are sent, one being a Base 64
encoded data fork file and the other being a Base 64 encoded resource fork
file. That is what I meant when I said:
> Thus simple Base64 encoding does not
> retain the resource fork while AppleDouble encoding does.
     While it may not be technically accurate to say that Base 64 does not
retain the resource fork, from my perspective choosing the Base 64 encoding
_option_ does not retain the resource fork. Is this the distinction you
are making?

Leonard Rosenthol <leonardr@Adobe.COM> on 12/21/98 11:52:54 AM

To: The Windows-MacOS cooperation list <winmac@xerxes.frit.utexas.edu>
cc: Blake Lange/FEC/US
Subject: Re: [WinMac] Cross-platform email

At 11:00 AM -0500 12/21/98, Blake Lange wrote:
> Although my knowledge of encodings is only as a user I don't think I am
> mixing them up.

     You are - trust me.

> The Claris Emailer Help says that if someone is attaching a
> file that is going to both MacOS and WinOS recipients they should use the
> Apple Double encoding. The following is their description of the Apple
> Doube encoding, "Apple Double splits the two forks into separate files.
The
> files are then further encoded using Base 64. If the enclosure is sent to
a
> MacOS computer, the two forks are re-integrated when they are received.
If
> the enclosure is sent to a non-MacOS computer, the resource fork file is
> ignored and the data is extracted from the data fork file in a form that
is
> usable on the receiving computer."

     That is a completely accurate description of the process!

> Thus simple Base64 encoding does not
> retain the resource fork while Apple Double encoding does, as I said.

     Sorry, you're wrong. Read the above paragraph again and then
read this:

     What you'll see if that Base64 encoding is applied to BOTH
forks and that when received on a Mac, those forks are properly
reassembled. On a Windows box, because it doesn't know from multiple
forks, the resource fork is simply ignored. The fact that the
AppleDouble file has been Base64 encoded is irrelevant - it's the
fact that Windows doesn't know from multiple forks.

LDR
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Leonard Rosenthol <mailto:leonardr@adobe.com>
Designated Free Electron (612) 766-4718 (Minn)
Adobe Systems Incorporated (215) 233-5270 (Philly)

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This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b2 on Mon Dec 21 1998 - 09:47:13 PST