Re: uh oh -- halp!
marca@ncsa.uiuc.edu (Marc Andreessen)
Date: Thu, 9 Sep 93 00:36:04 -0500
From: marca@ncsa.uiuc.edu (Marc Andreessen)
Message-id: <9309090536.AA09631@wintermute.ncsa.uiuc.edu>
To: ebina@ncsa.uiuc.edu
Cc: www-talk@nxoc01.cern.ch
Subject: Re: uh oh -- halp!
In-reply-to: <9309082001.AA01127@void.ncsa.uiuc.edu>
References: <9309072017.AA06025@wintermute.ncsa.uiuc.edu>
<9309082001.AA01127@void.ncsa.uiuc.edu>
X-Md4-Signature: 955c5d44d1f9818078a2790e85b4ce38
Status: RO
ebina@ncsa.uiuc.edu writes:
> In private conversation with me, Marc has convinced me that HTTP0 is
> useful enough for quick shell script special purpose servers that we need
> to keep it around as a viable protocol. That being the case. It is also
> vital that HTTP/1.0 clients still be able to talk to these servers.
>
> I feel we need to bite the bullet and be willing to change one of these
> protocols. Both are already somewhat established, and changing either
> of them will require the cooperation of all the current browser and server
> writers.
>
> 1) To change the HTTP/1.0 protocol to use a different separator between
> accept fields, and to use CR LF as a terminator. This means getting new
> versions of all the servers and clients, and also means getting all
> existing HTTP/1.0 servers upgraded. Anyone know the install base
> out there? This will cause lots of user headaches until all the servers
> get upgraded.
>
> 2) Change HTTP0. As I understand it, an HTTP0 server right now, to
> process an HTTP/1.0 request reads first the command (Usually GET),
> Then the URL. It throws away everything from the URL to CR LF.
> We could modify this slightly to instead throw away eveything up
> to the terminator for HTTP/1.0 (Which I think is CR LF CR LF).
> This would mean upgrading all the current HTTP0 servers and shell
> scripts. It should be an easy update, just change the terminating
> sequence. The biggest headache here is what to do about old HTTP0
> clients. They would hang on the new HTTP0 servers, because they would
> never send the right terminating sequence. Are their any browsers
> out there that are not planning to move to HTTP/1.0 in the coming year?
>
> If the number of HTTP/1.0 servers is small (less than 200), then I would
> prefer option 1. If both have about equal server numbers I would prefer
> option 2, because I would rather cause headaches for users of old
> (out-of-date) software than for users of our new stuff. (I.E. Everyone
> we have already sold on HTTP/1.0). For document writers who have to deal
> with stubborn old servers who refuse to upgrade, we could add a http0://
> url type to the browser that would always talk that protocol. Of course
> this will break all the current documents that assume all http is created
> equal.
So, of course, after sending my note of a few minutes ("I know Eric
disagrees with me"), I see he pretty much agrees with me... (we had a
pretty volatile lunchtime discussion over this today, at the end of
which I was convinced we weren't agreeing on anything :-). So yeah, I
like (2) and (if necessary) the http0 URL type.
That's what I get for reading my mail backwards...
Cheers,
Marc