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[xsl] XSL-List Guidelines

2013-05-01 08:58:39
This information is posted to the XSL-List (and the XSL-List Digest)
at intervals under the subject line "XSL-List guidelines".

INTRODUCTION TO XSL-LIST

XSL-List hosts discussion of XSL itself, XSL applications and implementation, 
and XSL user questions. XSL-List is open to everyone, users and developers, 
experts and novices alike. There is no restriction to what may be posted on the 
XSL-List provided it is related to XSL, which is considered to include XSLT 
(versions 1 and 2), XPath (versions 1 and 2) and XSL Formatting Objects (FO).

XSL-List is not a W3C mailing list, and has no affiliation with W3C (or any 
official standing with any standards organization). However, XSL-List was 
established with the encouragement of members of the W3C XSL Working Group, and 
members of the Working Group are among the subscribers to the list.

Only subscribers can post to XSL-List, but since the goal is to increase the 
level of XSL knowledge, XSL-List is being archived for everybody to view. The 
topics being discussed on the XSL-List change as new ideas arise or existing 
problems are dealt with, but the archive contains all of the ideas and 
solutions that have been discussed on the list.

XSL-List is provided by Mulberry Technologies, Inc., as a service to the XSL 
user community. Mulberry is an XML and SGML consultancy specializing in 
applications that have a text design, processing, interchange, or display 
component. For more information about Mulberry Technologies, Inc. see 
http://www.mulberrytech.com 


SUBSCRIBING TO THE XSL-LIST

To subscribe to the list, fill out the form at 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html.


DAILY DIGEST

Daily digests -- copies of a whole days XSL-List messages sent as one email 
message -- are available. Not only is it a single email message containing all 
of that day's XSL-List messages, it is also half the size, on average, of the 
individual messages since it doesn't include the overhead of the mail headers 
from each message.

To unsubscribe from the list and subscribe to the digest, use the form at 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html.


POSTING GUIDELINES

Only subscribers can post to XSL-List, and only from the exact address they 
used when they subscribed.

There is no restriction on what may be posted to the XSL-List provided it is 
related to XSL. Items concerning XML but without a direct connection to XSL 
should be posted to a XML-related list instead of to the XSL-List. Items 
related to DSSSL should be posted to the DSSSList.

Do not begin your subject line with "help" or "subscribe" since the list 
software will bounce the message because it looks like is an administrative 
request.

It is best to start a new message for a new thread. Do not start a new thread 
by replying to an unrelated message and just changing the subject line, since 
the header of your message will contain references to the previous message and 
your new message will appear in the archive as one of the replies to the 
original message.

Both subscribers to the full list 
(xsl-list(_at_)lists(_dot_)mulberrytech(_dot_)com) and subscribers to the 
digest (xsl-list-digest(_at_)lists(_dot_)mulberrytech(_dot_)com) should post 
their messages to xsl- list(_at_)lists(_dot_)mulberrytech(_dot_)com; the 
messages will be received by both subscribers to the list and subscribers to 
the digest.


BEFORE YOU POST ... DO YOUR HOMEWORK
- Check that your question isn't already answered in the XSL FAQ at 
http://www.dpawson.co.uk/.
- Check that your question isn't already answered in the XSL-List archives at 
http://www.biglist.com/lists/xsl-list/archives/.
- If you are asking for help with XSL code, determine which version of the 
language you are using (plus extensions, if any), and confirm that your XSL 
processor supports that version and/or extension. (If you are unsure of your 
processor, this can be determined by using the stylesheet at 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/processor-version.xsl on any input, 
including the stylesheet itself: see 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/processor-version.html for more 
information.) An XSLT 1.0 engine will not process stylesheets written in XSLT 
2.0!


IN YOUR POSTING ...

Name the XSL processor, processor version, and version of the language you are 
using. This information is frequently necessary to diagnose a problem exactly, 
and always helps respondents give good advice.

If you are replying to a post, trim the quoted message to just the parts to 
which you are replying.

In addition to following simple rules of net etiquette and common sense, you 
will improve the chances that you will receive prompt and helpful responses by:
- Asking questions specific enough that answers are possible. Describe what you 
are trying to do, how you approached it, what happened, and why you don't like 
the result you got. Don't simply say "it gave me an error": paste in the error 
message (someone else can probably make sense of it).
-  Illustrating your question with a demonstration of the problem. 
Well-composed questions frequently include a small XML sample, an XSLT 
stylesheet, the results received, and the result that was desired - all in 
miniature, to make it comprehensible to readers new to your problem. (It is 
also not uncommon to discover what a problem actually is in the process of 
reducing it to an illustrative version.)


USE INFORMATIVE SUBJECT LINES

When posting to the XSL-List, do not use uninformative subject lines like 
"Urgent", "Question", or "Newbie HELP!!!", which don't say anything about what 
your problem is. Instead, use a meaningful subject line that will make sense to 
the people whose help you are trying to get. It may even get a response from 
people who normally shy away from "beginner" questions.

Informative subject lines make the XSL-List archive more useful since people 
with the same problem will more easily find the relevant threads.


DO NOT CROSS-POST

Cross-posting to the XSL-List and to another list, even XML-Dev or the 
DSSSList, is generally counter-productive. No list's archive will contain the 
complete thread; cross-posts from non-subscribers continuing the thread will 
bounce; and XSL-List subscribers who are not also on the other list will only 
see half the thread, as will those on the other list who are not also reading 
XSL- List. Subscribers to both lists may see two copies of the message, 
annoying them as well.


REPLIES GO TO THE LIST

The reply address of XSL-List messages (and of digests) is 
xsl-list(_at_)lists(_dot_)mulberrytech(_dot_)com so REPLIES GO TO THE LIST BY 
DEFAULT. If you want to reply to just the author of a post, you should change 
the "To:" field in your reply.


USE SHORT QUOTES OF PREVIOUS MESSAGES IN REPLIES

Please do not quote entire messages just to add a few lines at the beginning or 
end. Instead, quote the parts to which you are directly replying or quote 
enough to establish the context.

Everybody on the list has already received the message that you are quoting, 
and anyone searching the archive will find your message and the previous 
message listed under the same thread.

Subscribers to the XSL-List will just ignore most of the quoted messages and 
move to the next post, but subscribers to the XSL-List Digest will mostly have 
to page past the quoted messages to reach the next material in which they are 
interested in reading.


POSTINGS MUST BE IN PLAIN TEXT ONLY

Postings to XSL-List must be in plain text only. The XSL-List does not allow 
HTML postings because many users cannot display them appropriately, and because 
they are unnecessarily large. 


POSTINGS MAY NOT BE IN BASE 64

Postings to XSL-List may not be in Base 64 because it makes a mess of both the 
digest and the archive. 


ATTACHMENTS ARE BANNED

Since Mulberry's mailing lists have in the past been unwittingly used for 
spreading viruses in e-mail attachments, all e-mail attachments are banned from 
the XSL-List.

XSL stylesheets are XML files, and XML files are text files, so this does not 
affect the majority of posts to the list since you can include the files' text 
in the body of your message. If you need to refer to a binary file such as a 
PDF file, you should put the file on a Web site or FTP site and include the 
file's URL in your XSL-List post.

If you do include an attachment in your XSL-List post -- even a HTML attachment 
-- your message will bounce.


YOUR POST WILL BE PERMANENTLY ARCHIVED

Because it is a public resource created by and for the entire XSL
community, we do not edit XSL-List. Therefore, it is responsibility of
list subscribers not to post anything to the list that they do not want
publicly available, possibly for a very long time.

Postings in the list archives will be complete, including: all contents, 
examples, sample data, code or code fragments, and email header and footer 
contents. An automated process will obscure the domain portion of email 
addresses (the part after the @ sign).in the headers and footers of postings, 
but no guarnantee is made that this process will be completely successfull. 
Other than this, all postings will be archived in public as received.

Further, we at Mulberry could not, even if we wanted to, edit all of the 
archives of XSL-List. Several third-parties have created unofficial archives of 
XSL-List, often without asking, or even informing, Mulberry. Postings to 
XSL-List 
will be included in an unknown and ever-changing variety of web publications. 
If 
you don't want your questions/comments/answers in public view don't post them 
to 
XSL-List. 


THIRD-PARTY ARCHIVES OF XSL-LIST

Third parties are welcome to create searchable or reference archives of XSL-List
provided they adhere to the following guidelines: 
- the material is clearly labelled as being from XSL-List, with 
 an acknowledgement of Mulberry's role as provider of XSL-List
- there is a navigable pointer to the official list page at
 http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/ either on every posting 
 or associated with the user interface such that it is visible with 
 the postings
- list postings are unedited
- either the entire archive of the list is provided or there is a 
 clearly stated method for selecting the subset of the list that is provided

Mulberry does not provide these third parties with help to create these 
archives, does not endorse particular third party archives, and has no control 
over the ways in which they present the material in their systems.

People or organizations that publish the contents of XSL-List without following 
the guidelines above are being very antisocial. Please bookmark either 
the official XSL-List archive or one provided by a service that plays nicely 
in the community and shun those who do not give credit where credit it due.


UNSUBSCRIBING FROM THE XSL-LIST

To unsubscribe from XSL-List, use the form at 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html. If you 
have difficulties unsubscribing from the list: 
 - make sure you are unsubscribing EXACTLY the email address that is 
   subscribed
 - if you receive only one message a day from the list be sure to 
   check the box marked "Select for the Digest version of the list"
   (if you subscribe to the digest and don't check this box the system
   will try to unsubscribe you from the regular list and fail; it will
   only unsubscribe you from the digest if you check this box.)

UNSUBSCRIBING FROM THE XSL-LIST DIGEST

To unsubscribe from the XSL-List digest, use the form at 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/subscribe-unsubscribe.html and
check the box marked "Select for the Digest version of the list".


IF YOU STOP GETTING XSL-LIST MESSAGES

If you stop receiving XSL-List message, you may have been removed because mail 
to you was bouncing. You are not being picked on, and you can just rejoin the 
list.


ARCHIVE

XSL-List messages are archived at 
http://www.biglist.com/lists/xsl-list/archives/.


REPORTING BUGS IN SOFTWARE

Bugs in software should firstly be reported to its author rather than to the 
XSL List. Questions regarding how to work around bugs are welcome, but the list 
does not function as a bug-tracking system for any software.


XSL FAQ AND OTHER INFORMATION ON XSL

Dave Pawson's XSL FAQ is at http://www.dpawson.co.uk/xsl/index.html.

The W3C information on XSL is at http://www.w3.org/Style/XSL.

Mulberry's Quick References are at http://www.mulberrytech.com/quickref/ and 
cover XSLT, XPath, and XQuery.


DSSSLIST -- THE DSSSL USERS' MAILING LIST

Mulberry Technologies, Inc., also provides the DSSSList -- the DSSSL Users' 
Mailing List. For subscription information and the DSSSList archive, see 
http://www.mulberrytech.com/dsssl/dssslist.


CONTACT

If you have any questions or problems, please contact 
xsl-list-owner(_at_)lists(_dot_)mulberrytech(_dot_)com.


ADMINISTRATIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The list administrator will reply to emailed questions relating to the 
mechanics and administration of XSL-List and to help new users learn to use the 
list. However, the administrator will not take the time to navigate mazes of 
any sort in order to do so. If the list owner's messages are rejected by a 
user's anti-spam system the list owner will not pursue the matter. Similarly, 
if list-related notices to a subscriber are rejected as spam the subscriber 
will be unsubscribed. 



CHANGE History

==============
December 26, 2011 - btu. 

11. Clarified instructions on unsubscribing from the digest version
    of the list.

==============
May 5, 2009 - btu. 

10. Added paragraph clarifying that all content will be archived in 
    public, including text, examples, code, and email headers and 
    footers including names.

==============
February 1, 2008 - btu. 

9. Policy on third-party archives added. 

8. Policy banning attachments and postings in Base 64 clarified. 

==============
September 1, 2007 - btu. 

7. Administrative communication policy clarified.  


==============
October 1, 2005 - btu. 

6. Mulberry Technologies' relationship to XSL-List clarified. We 
   do the work. We pay the bills. Organizations who post unauthorized 
   copies of the archive without acknowledging Mulberry's contribution 
   are not playing nicely in the community. 

==============
March 2, 2005 - btu. 

4. Users are asked to identify the version of XSLT and XPath
   they are using for questions that are specific to one version

5. Clarifying the policy on editing the list archive (we don't edit
   it). 

==============
March 30, 2004 - btu. 

1. All references to subscribing and unsubscribing have been
   updated to reflect changes in the list management system.

2. Pointers to the XSL and XPath specification were removed. There
   are now so many specifications and draft specifications relevant
   to XSL that it is more practical to simply point to W3C's XSL
   page. 

3. A few typographical errors were corrected.



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