From: Jon Eaves <jon@aba.net.au>
To: ml@qoole.com
Reply-To: ml@qoole.com
Date: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 09:43:07 +1100
Subject: Re: HTML not for email (was Re: Texture size (invisible email)) 

In message <34BE570B.A9E6DD66@ix.netcom.com> you typed:

[ I wasn't going to buy back into this, but I feel the need to 
  correct statements made here.  Some are just factually incorrect ]

>Not to argue the HTML in e-mail subject  I agree that text is fine and easy.

>But I  don't see where  you guys get off  about saying "HTML  was never
>meant to be what it is today"

Actually, only one person said that, and it was Perry.  I believe what he
meant what that it wasn't meant to be "used" like what it is today (as
per email) or at least that is how I read it.

>If  you  look through  the  history  of  HTML  you'll notice  that  the
>standards have changed due to companies like Netscape and IE.

Ah, not strictly true.  The W3 consortium has managed to hold together
a usable standard, *despite* the actions of Netscape and Microsoft.  Each
wanting to corner their areas of the market by including extensions 
specific to their web browser.

>Frames, Java, Javascript, CGI,
>Style Sheets, on and on have come to be because of those companies. 

Factually incorrect.  Certainly Javascript came from Netscape.

CGI was designed & implemented in the CERN _server_ that well and 
truly predates the existence of Netscape of a company, and IE.

Java was developed by an offshoot of Sun Microsystems and has no relation
in any way shape or form to Netscape/Microsoft other than they produce
buggy and incompatible version of the VM for the applets to run in.


>HTML and
>the web was originally designed for a US defense system now that isn't what it
>is used for now is it? 

If you had read my original statement on this, you'd know that what you've
just spouted here is garbage.  HTML/WWW was developed by Tim Berners-Lee
while working in CERN *in SWITZERLAND*.  It was used for collating and
structuring information initially (IIRC) for particle physics.

>If you want statistics lemme know I'll get em for ya.

That's OK, given your past accuracies, I'll skip this one. :-)

>HTML will always change.  The current standard is 3.2 but 4.0 is on it's way.

Too true, and that's good for the Web, but not for e-mail.  For your
(and others edification) I really do suggest having a look at
<URL:http://www.stars.com/Internet/History/>
and
<URL:http://www.w3.org/History/1989/proposal.html>

Now *that* is a good use of HTML in email :-)

>
>Viper

-- < Jon Eaves > (jon@aba.net.au)  (http://www.aba.net.au/people/jon/) --
        I've met a lot of people who gave up skiing to snowboard,
         but I've never met anyone who quit snowboarding to ski.
- QuakeID ; bastard # Member of Clan Cthugha ; Burn in the lake of fire -

[ snip of Perry's email ]