Note to Protocol Designers and Implementers
Jon Postel asks for protocol proposals as on-line documents and flags a Telnet subnegotiation change.
Postel, J., "Note to Protocol Designers and Implementers", RFC 580, DOI 10.17487/RFC0580, October 1973, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc580>.
@misc{rfc580,
series = {Request for Comments},
number = 580,
howpublished = {RFC 580},
publisher = {RFC Editor},
doi = {10.17487/RFC0580},
url = {https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc580},
author = {J. Postel},
title = {{Note to Protocol Designers and Implementers}},
pagetotal = 1,
year = 1973,
month = oct,
} RFC text
NWG/RFC# 580 JBP 25-OCT-73 06:00 19849 note to protocol designers and implementers Hereafter proposed protocols shall be submitted in the form of on-line documents, preferably as nls files at the Network Information Center. This will greatly facilitate the review process and enable editorial and substantive changes to proceed quickly. This also will permit timely updating of protocol documents as may be neccessitated by future decisions. On-line documents are also easily distributed to the network community. If you find great difficulty in complying with this request please contact me. It should be noted by all Telnet protocol readers and especially implementers that all the existing Telnet Options that involve subnegotiation are modified [see RFC 562] to terminate the subnegotiation strings with IAC SE. The value of SE is 240. Also note that within subnegotiations the occurance of a byte with the value 255 [IAC] requires doubling that byte on transmission. Please note that my address has changed to: Jon Postel The MITRE Corporation Mail Stop W185 Westgate Research Park McLean, Virginia 22101 Phone: (703) 893-3500 x2350 On-line messages will reach me addressed to either POSTEL@ISI or JBP in the NIC Journal.
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§1On-Line Protocol Documents
Hereafter, proposed protocols shall be submitted as on-line documents, preferably as NLS files at the Network Information Center. The note says this greatly facilitates the review process and lets editorial and substantive changes proceed quickly. It also permits timely updating as future decisions require, and on-line documents are easily distributed to the network community.
Anyone with great difficulty in complying is asked to contact the author.
Put your ideas in the shared computer instead of on paper, so changes are fast.
§2Telnet Subnegotiation Change
All existing Telnet Options that involve subnegotiation are modified (see RFC 562) to terminate the subnegotiation strings with IAC SE. The value of SE is 240.
Within subnegotiations, a byte with the value 255 (IAC) must be doubled on transmission.
Special messages now end with a clear stop sign, and if the message needs the stop sign's own symbol inside it, you write that symbol twice.
§3Contact Details
The note ends with a change of address for Jon Postel, now at The MITRE Corporation in McLean, Virginia. On-line messages reach him as POSTEL@ISI or as JBP in the NIC Journal.
It also tells people the new address for reaching the author.