Re: Unicode-capable compression software

From: m_wolf@richsun.cpg.trs.reuter.com
Date: Fri Oct 21 1994 - 05:50:29 EDT


From: NAME: Misha Wolf
        TEL: + 44 171 510 6722
        ADDR: London, England <M_WOLF@AM@REC>
To: NAME: Unicore <in%"richsun!uunet.uu.net!unicode.org!unicore"@rcssob@mrgate>,
        NAME: Unicode <in%"richsun!uunet.uu.net!unicode.org!unicode"@rcssob@mrgate>

I wrote:

| Does anyone know of a supplier with Unicode-capable compression software?

John Bennett replied:

| What type of compression are you looking for? Most file compressers should
| just work on Unicode files (though they may not save as much as a Unicode
| specific compressor). If you want a compression subroutine, the source code
| for a quick simple compressor is in the procedings of a UIW (I don't
| remember which). You can also ask me about it, since it was my paper. The
| paper also talks about other compressions, but I don't know of anyone
| implementing them. In fact the only implementation of a Unicode specific
| compression that I know about is in the (now defunct) PenPoint OS, which
| uses the code given in the paper.

I had assumed that traditional compression algorithms looked for repeats
on an 8-bit basis and, hence, would fail to compress Unicode. Is this
assumption correct/incorrect?

John - Please do send me your paper.

Many thanks.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Misha Wolf | Reuters Limited
  Internet: m_wolf@richsun.cpg.trs.reuter.com | 85 Fleet Street
  If replying, please check my return address is correct | London EC4P 4AJ
  Phone: +44 171 510 6722 Fax: +44 171 510 8726 | England
------------------------------------------------------------------------------



This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : Tue Jul 10 2001 - 17:20:32 EDT