"Sebastian G." <seppi@seppig.de> wrote:
> > What's wrong with HTML emails without remote content?
>
> <!doctype stupid><html><head><meta name="foo"
> content="bar"><title>baz</title></head><body><p>Nothing, it's very
> readible if the receiver's client doesn't support HTML.</body></html>
That's why usually there is also a text/plain part. Even the
mail-readers from the Outlook family generate it, so simpler readers can
display them (though the formatting is a mess).
> > Why the unnecessary inconvenience with ZIP files? I understand that
> > in some places (e.g. newsgroups) HTML mails are inappropriate, but
> > why this generalization?
>
> Because there's no standard for it, neither de-jure nor de-facto?
> because there is a standard to include some basic formatting
> (text/enriched)? [...]
MIME is a standard. It allows multipart-emails. HTML is also a
standard. Together with a standard MIME type name for HTML, that makes
HTML mails completely standardized. It's left to mail-readers how they
interpret the non-text/plain parts. Feel free to use a client, which
displays the text/plain parts only.
> Because it's a waste or bandwidth?
A waste of bandwidth? A few kilobytes per person per day? In the times
of home ADSL and gigabit backbone links? Demanding CR/LF instead of
sole LF for telnet-like protocols (including HTTP) must be a waste also.
All text-based protocols, in fact, must be a waste in your view.
You want to know, what _really_ is a waste today? Two people from the
same local subnet listening to the same internet radio station -- that
_is_ a waste of traffic. Not to mention botnets. And the internet
handles even that very well.
But no, MP3 streams via HTTP must be a waste anyway, just like graphics
on web pages and all the other fancy stuff. Back to the roots! \o/
> Because eMail isn't supposed to emit any formatting?
Oh yeah, everything that was made up in the 70s and 80s was ultimate.
There is no reason for inventions. In fact, we don't even need X11 or
OpenGL. Back to phosphor terminals! \o/
> Because HTML is meant for hypertext, not formatted documents?
Maybe HTML 1.0 was. Today, hypertext is one of many features of HTML.
Regards,
Ertugrul.
--
http://ertes.de/