Re: [Evolution] Re: title encoding

[Frank Burough <fburough elixirpharm com>]

On Thu, 2004-06-17 at 09:43, Michael Wever wrote:
> Here here. I agree with reading the specs and that m$ is total crap.
> But... when the mail comes in and the title is all junk (yes it happens to
> me alot) and m$ users, who have no idea about specs or code, see
> this then their response is to laugh and comment on what a piece of sh%t
> linux and evolution is. "It doesn't happen in outlook!" i hear them say.
>
> Evolution's lack of acceptance to m$ sh%t makes evolution look bad not
> outlook! Simple but true.
> Mick.
Mick is exactly right. We must remember that Microsoft is much more
interested in maintaining (or increasing) market share and forcing users
to be locked in to their products than in being standards compliant.
Whatever Microsoft implements, be it compliant or not, is a 'standard'
just due to their market penetration. If Microsoft displays a mail
header 'correctly' and other mailers (evo for example) do not, then it
is the standards-compliant mailer that will be viewed as the one with
the problem. It is to MS's advantage to have their software perform in
almost-standards-compliant fashion so they can continue to demonstrate
how much 'better' their software is than the alternative. I don't like
this any more than anyone else. But MS does not play fair. They play to
win. 

To be able to compete with them any competing mail client, for better or
worse, needs to bend their standards compliance the same way as MS does.
Not because it is 'right' but because until there is enough market
penetration of clients that _do_ adhere to the standards, MS will not
change. It is not in their best interest to do so. 

To take the high road and maintain standards compliance will limit the
acceptance of Evolution in shops that are heavily Outlook-based (like
mine). I am the sole Linux/Evolution user in my small company. I have to
defend my choice of systems on a regular basis. Not because Outlook is
better, but because Evolution is different. 

Just my $.02.

By the way, I love Evolution and would loathe going back to Outlook.

-- 
Frank Burough 
Associate Director, Bioinformatics
Elixir Pharmaceuticals
<fburough elixirpharm com>