RFC2047 encoded words

[mnot@…]

RFC 2616 defines RFC 2047 MIME word encoding for use with certain header values, e.g. if they are defined to contain quoted strings. RFC 2047 states:

While there is no limit to the length of a multiple-line header field, each line of a header field that contains one or more 'encoded-word's is limited to 76 characters.

The length restrictions are included both to ease interoperability through internetwork mail gateways, and to impose a limit on the amount of lookahead a header parser must employ (while looking for a final ?= delimiter) before it can decide whether a token is an "encoded-word" or something else.

It seems to me this provision is not meant to apply to HTTP, and if MIME word encoding is to stay with us in the next HTTP specification, it should state that this line length limit does not apply to HTTP.

[mnot@…]

Also includes:

• should the set of character encodings be restricted?
• should the encoding form (b or q) be restricted?
• should line folding be addressed?

[mnot@…]

Proposal:

Only remove the line length restrictions.

[fielding@…]

From [395]:

Deprecate line folding, addresses #77. Require that invalid whitespace around field-names be rejected, addresses #30. Make non-ASCII content obsolete and opaque in header fields and reason phrase, addresses #63, #74, #94, #111.

[julian.reschke@…]

Fixed in [398]:

Resolve #63, #74, #94, #111: Issues around TEXT rule closed with revision [395] (closes #63, #74, #94, #111)

[julian.reschke@…]

re-open until reviewed

[julian.reschke@…]

Part 6 still allows RFC2047 encoding for the Warn header.