[Previous] [Next] [Index] [Thread]

Re: GSS API...



Roger Masse's the named writes:

[muncha muncha muncha - the line-eater burps]

> What if we output the document at a bitmap instead of ascii or 
> unicode?  Can we make the 'just edit' process difficult enough
> to keep service providers convinced it's at least as good as 
> hardcopy?

ngh..... a really really bad idea?

If I wanted a bitmap I would have asked for a fax. The whole point is
that I can get text that I can process and munge to my hearts content.
Besides, assuming I pay the provider for the bitmap, and then pay the
extra $$ for the bandwidth that this now-rather-massive-book will 
occupy - what is to prevent me running an OCR over the nigh-perfect
bitmap and extract an ascii file?  (If the bitmap is not nigh-perfect
then I'm not buying it!)

PDF may be a better soln for that sort of thing - or better postscript
viewers (then you can do the funky watermark serial number embedding
in the printout without affecting the content).  (Last month's wired
if I remember correctly - research by Bell Labs)

But seriously, this probably ought to move to the commerce mailing
list.  Does anyone have a suggestion as to an appropriate mail-list
address?

Christian "For our next topic: russian dancing bears and public key crypto"


References: