> -----Original Message-----
> From: Julian Mehnle
> Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2003 3:34 AM

> Malcolm Weir <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

> > > If these standards are open to interpretation then there will be
> > > discrepancies between the MTAs.
> > 
> > And that would be a problem... why?
> 
> Where did you live during the past 7 years?  Under a rock? 

Julian,

Please try to show me some courtesy, and acknowledge that I *explicitly* answered my 
rhetorical question in the next paragraph, which you for some reason chose to ignore 
in your post.

And the answer I provided was that it would problem *if* it resulted in less stuff 
working.  If a given change results in *more* stuff working, your position simply 
becomes... legalistic, if not petulant!

[ And, to answer you question, I've been living in California for the past 7 years, 
largely working on implementing SCSI devices and initiators.  Compared to ANSI 
X3.131-1994 and the like, the RFCs are wonderfully relaxed.  Still, in either case, 
dogmatic adherance to the letter of the standard/RFC doesn't help, and often hinders.  
*Intelligent* adherance does... ]

> To 
> clearly see the consequences of loose interpretation of 
> standards, please have a look at the history of HTML and several 
> web browsers.

The issue with HTML was not "loose interpretation of standards", but conflicting 
interpretations.

The issue *here* is whether the RFC's should be interpret AS INTENDED (see RFC2555) or 
as some mystical sacred document.

> I agree that there should be an option(!) to enable loose DNS MX 
> checking, but it must never be the default or it will only 
> encourage DNS masters to not make their homework, and then we 
> will have to make more and more software support such misconfigurations.

No-one is suggesting (despite the slight innuendo) that RFCs be ignored wholesale.  
The issue is whether the interoperability of software should be REDUCED by adhering 
slavishly to a narrow (and arguable) viewpoint, as opposed to increased by a more 
tolerant viewpoint.

There are, obviously, problems when there are conflicting viewpoints, but there aren't 
in this situation, and as far as I can tell there can be no doubt as to what an MX 
pointing to a CNAME actually *means*.

Or do you disagree?  Is there some possible meaning of an MX/CNAME that is not "if the 
target of the MX is a CNAME, interpret the CNAME until you get an A"?

Malc.



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