Re:HTML troubles

At 4:35 AM -0500 3/6/03, Violet is rumored to have typed:

> every frickin' time AOL
> upgrades, it causes a whole new set of problems because the new program
> isn't on any of the instruction lists yet.

   Won't be, either; AOL 8.0 CAN NOT send plain text email, joining MSN
Messinger and some others. As one of the world's foremost proponents of
rejecting HTML email, I have officially given up.

> So I'm wondering...  is there any way [or can anyone here come up with a
> way] to make Smartlist simply convert any and all HTML/encoded messages to
> plain text?

   To add to the options listed by others, I use demime.pl (
http://scifi.squawk.com/demime.html ) which I find about a aggressive in
converting to plain text as anything else around. It'll happily strip tags
from text/html messages as well as the easier "use-the-text/plain-section"
that others use; it also _tells_ you what it's done, what attachment or
sections have been removed, etc.

   I hacked the lists to not only run the mail through demime, but also add a
note to the bottom that the server has altered the message. I then send a
mail to the sender, asking them to attempt to send plain-text mail
(understanding that some, AOL 8.x for example, can NOT), pointing them to a
web page with more detailed information (which also suggests they find a real
Internet provider).

   This seems to help get the Outlook-Express-on-default crowd to send text,
while still allowing AOLamers to post.

         Charlie