RFC 1502 (rfc1502) - Page 1 of 14

X

Alternative Format: Original Text Document
Next >
Network Working Group                                      H. Alvestrand
Request for Comments: 1502                                  SINTEF DELAB
                                                             August 1993


                  X.400 Use of Extended Character Sets

Status of this Memo

   This RFC specifies an IAB standards track protocol for the Internet
   community, and requests discussion and suggestions for improvements.
   Please refer to the current edition of the "IAB Official Protocol
   Standards" for the standardization state and status of this protocol.
   Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

1.  Introduction

   Since 1988, X.400 has had the capacity for carrying a large number of
   different character sets in a message by using the body part
   "GeneralText" defined by ISO/IEC 10021-7.

   Since 1992, the Internet also has the means of passing around
   messages containing multiple character sets, by using the mechanism
   defined in RFC-MIME.

   This RFC defines a suggested method of using "GeneralText" in order
   to harmonize as much as possible the usage of this body part.

2.  General principles

2.1.  Goals

   The target of this memo is to define a way of using existing
   standards to achieve:

    (1)  in the short term, a standard for sending E-mail in the
         European languages (Latin letters with European accents,
         Greek and Cyrillic)

    (2)  in the medium term, extending this to cover the Hebrew and
         Arabic character sets

    (3)  in the long term, opening up true international E-mail by
         allowing the full character set specified in ISO-10646 to be
         used.






Alvestrand
Next >