Re: Why Microsoft's authoritative=true won't work and is a bad idea

Dave Singer wrote:
> 
> I am wondering whether we can't actually get closer to the current 
> specification.  Does anyone know the answer to the following?
> 
> * if a document is delivered without a content-type header, do the 
> browsers effectively sniff the document type?

I would assume so.

> * can Apache be fixed not to give a content-type header if, in fact, it 
> doesn't know it?

Apache httpd trunk (not 2.2.* afaik) can be configured with DefaultType 
"None" (which causes no Content-Type to be sent when unknown); see 
<https://issues.apache.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=13986>.

> If the answer is yes to both, we may be able to ameliorate the position 
> by getting closer to having the presence of content-type give the "I 
> mean it" indication...

That would be great.

> An alternative might be to add a header "look, I guessed it" when Apache 
> adds a 'guessed' text/plain as the content-type, and say that browsers 
> might take text/plain+IGuessed as something to sniff.  This is like the 
> proposed Microsoft header but the other way up...

I agree that's nicer in theory. But how do we get all the existing 
installations to change their DefaultType?

BR, Julian

Received on Monday, 7 July 2008 15:47:22 UTC