CDR: Non-flat-ascii mail [was: Sunders point on copyright infringement & HTML]

[Trei, Peter]

> Choate[SMTP:ravage at einstein.ssz.com] wrote:
> 
> Sunder raises a good point about Netscape (and potentially other software
> as well) amd forwarding URL's with attached content.
> 
> Why is the page attached? Because Netscape attaches the page and doesn't
> offer a way to send only the URL from right click -> send page. There
> isn't a switch to set default behaviour (and there should be).
> 
Jim: You are not a clueless newbie. Copy a URL out of the URL window of your
browser, and paste that into the text of your message. Similarly, cut &
paste 
text, and reformat it appropriately when neccesary. I spend considerable
time
doing this out of respect for my reader's time (most recently in the post
which
quoted from 'A Man for All Seasons').

It is, as I have said, common courtesy, and consideration for others. 

	[...]

> As to using HTML, this is 2000 (soon to be 2001). Get used to it. Hell, I
> might start embedding ANSI VT100 color codes and the occassional ^g.
> Animated ANSI would be pretty cool too. If I get the time I might even
> install TurBoard and MGE under an emulation and start including NAPLPS
> graphics while I'm at it. I don't have words to express the frustration I
> have with straight ASCII text and doing technical work at times (but
> that's another issue).
> 
If you put in all the doodads you mention, the main effect will be that 
even fewer people will bother to read your messages. 


>        The Armadillo Group       ,::////;::-.          James Choate
> 
"I don't have words to express the frustration I have with straight ASCII
text" 

This sounds like the poor workman blaming his tools. All the great
literary works of the last 2000 years were done in flat ascii, but 
apparently it's too limiting a medium for your subtle insights. I 
guess the next thing you'll do is dictate your messages, and 
expect us to listen to your deathless prose in streaming audio 
(or maybe video :-)

What I really think is happening is this: You are a lazy jerk. 
You don't want to do anything harder than right-click the page 
in your browser, select 'Send Page', type in 
'cypherpunks at einstein.ssz.com' and click 'Send'. 


This is a good example of 'the tragedy of the commons'. What you do
is locally optimzed - it's certainly faster for *you* to send the entire
page from Netscape, but you inflict significant costs on the *entire 
readership* in doing so, since they have to launch browsers, load
pages, set cookies, turn up in server logs, run java, run javascript, 
run ASP, install and run plugins etc. This not only takes extra time,
but wastes resources, and compromises the readers security and
privacy.

Of course, if everyone behaved like you did, the list would grind
to a halt. But so long as you're the only one being a jerk, you win.

You're pissing where we all drink; even if this is acceptable to you,
you are rapidly sending your reputation down the toilet. Why should
people give any consideration to your views while you manifestly
give no consideration to their time, security, and privacy? 

Peter Trei