[Lowfer] File attachment+message text must be under 50KB total

[Doug Reed]

Hi all.

Just a reminder that on the LOWFER list, all file attachments must be 
under 50KB total size, including the actual message text. This is 
primarily because long messages and attachments take longer to handle in 
a busy server and also cost more in data charges at the end of the 
month. And there are some people on the email list who are using slow 
data connections or have Internet service that charges a fee based on 
how much data they use per month.

And just to make it more difficult... :-)
When you attach an image to a text email, your email program converts it 
to a specially formatted block of text that is appended to the end of 
your message. The conversion from binary image to formatted text block 
usually means the file grows about 50% in size. What used to be a 48KB 
image file becomes a 64KB text block, and now your message is too big 
and it gets dumped.

The best image format to use is probably going to be a low quality 
compressed JPG file. You can experiment with file size, but anything 
under 30KB is probably best. A compressed GIF format is probably second 
choice. Uncompressed formats like TIFF and BMP should be avoided. And 
obviously you will want to trim the size of the image down to what is 
critical, not trying to send the whole screen.

Another thing to remember is that the LOWFER list, like most other email 
lists, accepts TEXT messages only. HTML messages get stripped from the 
message because it duplicates the text and adds more overhead with the 
formatting. Your email program probably has a setting option that will 
let you set TEXT ONLY as a default setting for all messages sent to the 
LOWFER list.

Third item is to trim off excess text when you reply to someone and 
quote the original message. I don't know about you, but I personally get 
very annoyed when I read through a dozen emails in a row where there are 
a few lines of new text added to a 2 to 5 page string of old quotes. 
Yes, I do consider it good etiquette to quote specific text that I'm 
replying to, particularly when there are multiple people reading the 
email. But if anyone needs to read back through 6 or 10 previous replies 
to find out the original question, they should probably use the LOWFER 
online archive at qth.net to read it instead.

This is the busy season for LOWFER activity. Enjoy yourself!

73, Doug Reed, N0NAS.
LOWFER list admin.