OT: Mail system trashes Swedish flag

[Fred Smith]

On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 08:57:29AM -0700, Jonathan Ryshpan wrote:
> On Wed, 2013-03-20 at 20:05 +1030, Tim wrote:
> > On Tue, 2013-03-19 at 23:41 -0700, Jonathan Ryshpan wrote:
> > > I've just completed the first exercise for using inkscape, which is to
> > > draw a Swedish flag.  I saved it as a PDF and emailed it to a Swedish
> > > friend, but all he got when he viewed the image was an empty
> > > rectangle.  It seems the trouble is that somewhere in the mail system,
> > 
> > Check the MIME type that your mailer is sending it as.  It should be a
> > binary one specific to the actual file type.  And the file should be not
> > be converted, in any way, at either end.
> > 
> > However, if you're mistakenly sending it as a text/plain attachment,
> > mail systems may do whatever they usually do as text files go through
> > them, which can include translating line endings.
> > 
> > Likewise, if their end doesn't properly handle the type of attachment
> > that it's receiving.  Some systems label PDF files as simply being
> > application/octet-stream, which just means generic non-specific binary,
> > and some systems mishandle such files.
> > 
> > When you say you saved it as a PDF, are you actually saving as a PDF
> > filetype, or just tacking PDF onto the end of the filename?  Related to
> > that, are you sending a PDF file type without giving it a PDF filename?
> 
> I'm a little perplexed.  Linux doesn't mark files with their type, as
> Mac systems do.  The file has a .pdf extension, and the file command
> shows it as PDF type.
>         $ file SwedishFlag.pdf 
>         SwedishFlag.pdf: PDF document, version 1.5
> 
> > How did you email it?  What mail program did you use?
> 
> The email program is evolution.  I clicked "Send".
> 
> Here is the start of the section of the message containing the
> attachment in question:
>         Content-Type: application/pdf; name="SwedishFlag.pdf"
>         Content-Description: 
>         Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SwedishFlag.pdf"
>         Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
> 
> I've attached a copy of SwedishFlag.pdf.  Also SwedishFlag.zip, as
> suggested in an earlier posting.  Let's see what the mail system does to
> them in Linux systems.
> 
> Thanks - jon
> 
> 
> 
the pdf file displays as a swedish flag, here, on Centos 6.4, using mutt.



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-- 
---- Fred Smith -- fredex at fcshome.stoneham.ma.us ----------------------------
                    Do you not know? Have you not heard? 
    The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. 
  He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.
----------------------------- Isaiah 40:28 (niv) -----------------------------