On Wed, Feb 10, 2010 at 12:32:20PM +0100, Lars Hellström wrote:

> Heiko Oberdiek wrote:
> >* Encoding conversions, see package `stringenc'.
> >  Application: PDF (outlines and other text fields).
> 
> This is, at least for the input, rather (3) or (4).

stringenc is rather (1) or (2).

> Or are you anticipating character sets larger than ^^@--^^ff for the
> underlying engine?

That depends on the requirements of LateX3:
* Are characters larger than ^^ff supported?
If no, then the character of a string is limited to 8bit.

> Then one conversely needs an "octet string" concept, for
> \special and the like.

You mean different string types:
  "octet string"
  "native string" (engine dependent)
  ...
perhaps in different forms:
  "normalized catcodes" (only 12 or 12+10)
  "unnormalized catcodes" (10/space, 11/letter, 12/other,
    perhaps 3/math 4/alignment, 8/subscript,
    7/superscript (more difficult),
    not 0/escape, 1/{, 2/}, 6/#, 9/ignore, 13/active,
    14/comment, 15/invalid).
  "LICR",
  ...

Yours sincerely
  Heiko <[log in to unmask]>