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Re: [ddlm-group] options/text vs binary/end-of-line. .. .. .

Thanks John for putting in the effort to come up with a decent
compromise proposal.  I would add something along the lines of
'Compliant CIF2 processors should at a minimum be able to deal with
files in CIF interchange format'.  And somewhere I would really like
to warn people of the dangers of using anything else for storage.  But
I think I could live with what you've come up with, as it looks like
I'm unlikely to get support for anything more restrictive.

On Wed, Jun 23, 2010 at 1:15 AM, Bollinger, John C
<[email protected]> wrote:
>
> I prefer leaving the issue of character encoding entirely out of the scope of the CIF format specification (effectively allowing any encoding). �On the other hand, I think it's a bit of an aggrandizement to characterize UTF-16 / Shift-JIS / etc. as "ways in which many of our colleagues get their science done." �In no way do I dispute that many of our colleagues indeed use these encodings routinely, but I am doubtful that editing Unicode text with a text editor constitutes a significant part of many of their research programs. �At least, few of my English-speaking colleagues edit flat Unicode text files with any frequency, if ever they do at all.
>
> I think there is already good software, some of it free (both senses), for operating systems at least as old as Windows 9x, that supports editing UTF-8 encoded text. �Most of it also supports a multitude of other encodings. �We would leave no one out by requiring UTF-8, and I do not see that respect for our colleagues demands that CIF2 be equally convenient to create and edit with every text editor in current use. �If that is doubtful, however, and respect is our goal, then wouldn't the most respectful thing be to *ask* a few of the people about whom we are concerned?
>
> My issue here is different, and at least partly philosophical. �The CIF format can and should be about the structure and meaning of CIF text content. �Character encoding is on a different level: it's a characteristic of storage and interchange. �Comingling these layers is inelegant and unnecessary.
>
> Moreover, a CIF2 requirement to encode in UTF-8 will be small comfort when presented with a file that is not, in fact, encoded that way. �What can you then do? �Either reject the file or autodetect the encoding. �If CIF2 does not specify a particular encoding, and you receive the same file, then what can you do? �Exactly the same things, but then it's more likely that the file's provider will have also specified the encoding by some means. �(Particularly so if the CIF2 spec calls attention to the need to do so.)
>
> Perhaps something like this would be an acceptable compromise:
> a) Rewrite change 2 to remove the requirement for UTF-8
> b) Add:
> ====
> CHANGE 9 - NEW (CIF Interchange Format)
>
> Many alternative encodings are available for recording and exchanging Unicode character data via byte-oriented media. �The CIF format itself is encoding independent, but that allows for uncertainty as to how to handle putative CIF data unaccompanied by encoding information. �We therefore define a simple, binary CIF Interchange Format, consisting of CIF2 text encoded in UTF-8, with an optional initial UTF-8 byte-order mark. �CIF Interchange Format is intended as a storage and interchange standard for CIF2. �Its use is strongly encouraged, but its existence should not be taken as a prohibition against use of alternative storage and interchange formats among agreeing parties.
>
> The standard file name extension for CIF Interchange Format files is .cif.
> ====
>
>
> Regards,
>
> John
> --
> John C. Bollinger, Ph.D.
> Department of Structural Biology
> St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
>
>
> Email Disclaimer: �www.stjude.org/emaildisclaimer
>
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