From: hughes@ah.com (Eric Hughes)
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 08:31:52 PDT
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: REMAIL: standardized remailer syntax
In-Reply-To: <199404030148.RAA10520@jobe.shell.portal.com>
Message-ID: <9404031518.AA06509@ah.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


>I like Sameer's goal of standardized syntax, but I have to admit that I
>find the :: and ## bit confusing, and hard to explain.

Hal sort of implies that :: came first.  Well, no, ## came first,
because I wasn't thinking clearly at the time about header commands
with respect to encryption.  A minor point, to be sure.

>This all makes sense but it makes for a complicated system. 

No one should ever have to see :: and ## unless they want to, much
less type them in.  The pasting syntax and all the header commands are
a back-end programming language, and really don't belong in the
average user's face.

User interface work is needed here badly.

>I would suggest abandoning one of "Anon-To" or "Request-Remailing-To",
>as they are redundant.  

I recommend the following four commands:

	Send-To:
	Anon-Send-To:
	Post-To:
	Anon-Post-To:

There are uses for both anonymous and non-anonymous sending of email
and posting to Usenet.  I originally used Request-Remailing-To
_because_ it was too long and not used.  It certainly doesn't need to
stay.

>Many of the remailers pass Subject lines.  I don't think they should.

Hal is correct.  This was a misfeature in the original code base.

>The best thing is to have a way to
>set the subject as the message leaves the last remailer in the chain.  

##
Subject: Your Subject Here

It's already supported.


In other lines of pursuit, it's time to do a MIME remailer.  The
proper MIME types would be much easier to install, as I understand it.
Perhaps those of you who use MIME (I don't) could work on this.

Eric