[ih] SMTP History

[Steve Crocker]

I don’t recall giving instructions about adding mail to ftp.  Could have
happened, but I don’t recall it.

Steve

On Mon, Mar 28, 2022 at 11:23 PM vinton cerf via Internet-history <
internet-history at elists.isoc.org> wrote:

> steve was at arpa 1971-1974 but he focused then on AI.
> while at UCLA from 1968?-1971 he was the head of the Network Working Group
> and in that role had much to say about where we were headed.
>
> v
>
>
> On Mon, Mar 28, 2022 at 11:08 PM Jack Haverty via Internet-history <
> internet-history at elists.isoc.org> wrote:
>
> > Interesting.   Do you remember... Was Steve an ARPA Program Manager at
> > the time?  I.e., was adding mail to FTP an order or a suggestion?   Did
> > he say anything about why Mail had to be in FTP? Were there any FTP
> > implementations already functional with some form of MAIL command
> > implemented that Steve wanted to become ubiquitous?   /Jack
> >
> > On 3/28/22 14:50, John Day wrote:
> > > MAIL and MLFL were added at the last minute of the FTP meeting at BBN
> in
> > March 1973.
> > >
> > > We were about to wrap up the meeting when Steve Crocker came in and
> said
> > we have to have a Mail in FTP. So we did it.
> > >
> > > That was the same meeting at which in response to the question what
> > happens when one stores a file with a BYTE size of 23 and RETRieves it
> with
> > a BYTE size of 17? Padlipsky said, “Sometimes when changing oranges into
> > apples one gets lemons.” And it was immediately decided that was the
> > correct response. Good ol’ MAP.  ;-)
> > >
> > > John
> > >
> > >> On Mar 28, 2022, at 17:24, Dave Crocker via Internet-history <
> > internet-history at elists.isoc.org> wrote:
> > >>
> > >> On 3/28/2022 2:07 PM, Jack Haverty via Internet-history wrote:
> > >>> There are artifacts in the RFCs capturing some of the early work. FTP
> > began circa 1971 with RFC172.  At the same time, there was discussion of
> a
> > "Mail Box Protocol" intended to enable functions like remote printing as
> a
> > way of sending something to someone else over the ARPANET.   You just
> send
> > it to their printer.   See RFCs 196, 221.
> > >>> At first, FTP added a "MAIL <user>" command, which each machine
> > receiving such MAIL could process as it saw fit.  Print it out.
> > >>
> > >> RFC 354 (July 1972 and edited by Abhay Bhushan) does not contain the
> > string 'mail'.
> > >>
> > >> RFC 475 (March, 1973 and edited by Abhay Bhushan) discusses FTP's MAIL
> > and MLFL commands. It is a meeting report discussing agreement to create
> > those commands.
> > >>
> > >> RFC 542 (August 1973 and edited by Nancy Neigus) does not contain the
> > string 'mail'.
> > >>
> > >> RFC 765 (Aug, 1973 and edit by Jon Postel) does. But while is cites a
> > mail command, it does not specify it.
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> d/
> > >>
> > >> --
> > >> Dave Crocker
> > >> Brandenburg InternetWorking
> > >> bbiw.net
> > >> --
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> >
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