Fred Baker wrote:
I
found Dave Crocker's comment that the IETF never does interoperability
testing equally amazing. The IETF has never offered the room (that is
something a host does), but to describe the semi-annual PPP-fests that
occurred throughout the 1990's, the OSPF testing that resulted in RFC
1246, and all the interoperability testing that has been done since, as
unrelated to IETF activity is ... interesting. Here, I thought we were
all IETF participants testing IETF specifications and products based on
them, providing test results as called for in RFC 2026 and working group
document feedback, and in the end demonstrating the "running code" part
of the IETF mantra.
Fred,
There seems to be some confusion about the boundaries between "IETF
activities" and "Internet activities." I am assuming that no rational person
would assert that they are 1:1.
When a company is selling a product that incorporates an IETF standard, is
that an IETF activity?
When a conference is held that discusses IETF standards, is that an IETF
activity?
When a company has employees attending the IETF and they get together for a
company-specific dinner, is that an IETF activity?
The list of things that are "related" to the IETF but are not part of it is
probably infinite. Content, timing, location and participant names have
pretty much nothing to do with whether it is an IETF activity. The question
is whether is it "run" by the IETF.
Successful IETF work begins somewhere before the IETF.
It is a process that discovers and assesses community need for some added
capability and for willingness to work on it. In rare cases, an IETF BOF
serves that role, but the usual experience is that waiting until them pretty
much dooms the result.
Lesson 1: Without real community interest in using IETF output, it won't
get used. So making sure the interest is there is paramount.
After the IETF does its part, the work continues among other people and
groups. The IETF is the shepherd for only a part of the sequence. If any of
the other parts fail to do their job, the technology will not get used. We
seem to forget that.
Lesson 2: The IETF does not create or sustain community interest.
Witness how thoroughly we ignore post-Proposed efforts, except for the rare
and half-hearted Draft exercise. The IETF operates open loop, with respect to
the actual success of its work.
It is not a criticism of the IETF to observe that its role is limited. It is
a criticism to observe that an serious constituency thinks otherwise.
d/
--
Dave Crocker
Brandenburg InternetWorking
bbiw.net
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