Subj : Local vs Network message boards
To   : AKAcastor
From : Digital Man
Date : Fri May 24 2024 18:55:29

  Re: Local vs Network message boards
  By: AKAcastor to Blue White on Sun May 05 2024 11:05 am

 >  BW> This post got me thinking, though, so I fired up MM on a QWK packet.
 >  BW> It truncates the subjects to ~24 on replies also.  I wonder if that is
 >  BW> a *QWK* standard and all QWK readers do it when processing QWK
 >  BW> packages?
 >
 > You are correct - 24 characters is the limit for subject lines in QWK
 > packets.
 >
 > The specs are a 25-byte ASCII string for the subject line - the last
 > character must be NULL, so 24 printable characters.
 > http://wiki.synchro.net/ref:qwk
 >
 > I assume the above site is considered a reputable source. ;)

It is. :-) But you're misreading it: there's no subject string termination needed (space or NULL), so the full 25 characters can be used in a standard/original QWK message. QWKE extends the subject lengths beyond 25 chars.

 > I don't know the history behind it, whether the limit was arbitrarily chosen
 > for QWK packets or if it was a pre-existing limit enforced by some BBS
 > software.

PCBoard limit, maybe. QWK was originally for PCBoard, iirc.
-- 
                                            digital man (rob)

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