[no subject]

This illustrates problems some people are having with Apple files using
web browsers.  The RULE is:  transfer binary files in binary mode,
transfer text files in text mode.  Binary is known as 'image' mode in FTP,
and text is known as 'ascii' mode in FTP.  Many unix commands use a '-a' 
command to signify text mode (ie, sz or unzip) or '-b' (sz) or '-i'
(kermit) to set binary mode.  With browsers, there is no command line
option or menu option to set text/binary modes, so browsers use a
'.mimetypes' file (or similar) for controlling transfer modes.  If
'binary' were the default then life would be simpler, but 'text' is the
default for many users.  This is bad as it corrupts the binary files.

Jeff, if Apple binary files are having end-of-line conversions being done
then you are NOT transferring in binary mode.  End-of-line conversions
only happen in text transfers.  Try to fix your transfer program or
browser or change to another application to do your file transfers.

Binary files should NEVER have end-of-line conversions done.  If a 'text'
file is transferred as binary, no harm is done, and end-of-line conversion
can be done with some utility or program on the receiving computer.  If a
binary file is transferred as text, irreversible harm may be done and the
file can not be reconverted back to original form.  Even worse things
happen if data is stored as 7-bit data for 'text' files.  Binary files
need 8-bit data.  (There are protocols to put 8-bit data through 7-bit
data streams but that is a separate issue.)

  --Steve

-- 

 --Steve  (apple2pd@ground.ecn.uiowa.edu)