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Re: Internet Draft Guidelines Require Precise Formatting?

2003-04-21 16:50:22
Dave,

At 3:57 PM -0700 4/21/03, Dave Crocker wrote:
John,

JM>    Although it may seem silly to
JM> some (and some of you may not want to hear from them anyway), the
JM> IETF's formatting rules do present a (relatively small) hurdle to
JM> public policy advocates and other outsiders.

well, this is an unexpected benefit of our formatting rules...

the IETF is a technical body, not a place for public policy debates.

Not to start an extended debate (especially in a thread on formatting), but as much as the IETF would like to avoid public policy debates (for good reasons that I appreciate), there are times when _technical_ decisions have significant impact on public policy concerns. I believe that neither the IETF nor the public are well served by ignoring (or being unaware of) those potential impacts. Thus, I think that there are times where public policy input into the IETF is a healthy, constructive thing, especially if the input is provided in a constructive matter (and yes, in a widely readable format). To promote constructive, non-time-wasting input, I've encouraged policy advocates to (a) learn about the procedures, structure, and culture of the IETF before participating, (b) read and review the relevant lists before participating, and (c) use the modes of communication accepted by the community for their input. It is on this last point that I-D formatting is relevant.

and to the extent you want to pursue the matter seriously, there are
at least two critical items to remembers:

1.  The format requirements are easy to satisfy, with support for MS
Word and XML-based documents readily available;

Can the requirements be satisfied using MS Word and the multistep production/post-processing procedures? Absolutely. There is even evidence that some lawyers can do it. But it is not "easy" to non-techies who seldom work within the standards world. And although XML and Marshall's utility are great (separately and together), that is way beyond what can reasonably be asked of a non-techie today.

I appreciate that the IETF is set in its ways (and more often than not I appreciate those ways). A pitched battle to change the formatting requirements is not one that I personally feel the need to wage right now. But if on the other hand there is any broader recognizition by the community that thoughtful and constructive outside input can sometimes be valuable, then I would be happy to participate in an effort to facilitate such input, or at least reduce non-critical barriers to such input.

John



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