Keith Moore writes:
Shall we say it started out as a BCP, which then grew small
prescriptive leanings in the form of the "auto" prefix and
auto-submitted?
you could say that, but I don't think it would be accurate.
The huge thread last year seemed to be about best current practice
rather than innovative improvement... but it doesn't matter. The
document is where it is, neither a simple description of the past nor a
prescription for radical change.
IMHO, the document strikes the right balance between describing BCP and
making small, safe improvements that will not launch flame wars.
the document has always been about protocols, and it has always been
intended to affect running code, even if it wasn't so much specifying
data formats.
Even a 100% pure BCP would affect much running code, sadly ;)
--Arnt