[Bug 9729] New: Straw poll method hides or discourages gathering essential information

http://www.w3.org/Bugs/Public/show_bug.cgi?id=9729

           Summary: Straw poll method hides or discourages gathering
                    essential information
           Product: HTML WG
           Version: unspecified
          Platform: PC
        OS/Version: Windows XP
            Status: NEW
          Severity: normal
          Priority: P2
         Component: working group Decision Policy
        AssignedTo: dave.null@w3.org
        ReportedBy: lmm@acm.org
         QAContact: public-html-bugzilla@w3.org
                CC: mjs@apple.com, Paul.Cotton@microsoft.com,
                    rubys@intertwingly.net, mike@w3.org


When reviewing the results of a straw poll, it's often essential,
when assessing the state of agreement, to know the difference
between:

a)  They care a lot but their opinion has already been expressed better
   than they think they can
b) they really don't care
c) They think they might care but haven't had time to decide
d)  They're not really following the working group

The current survey methodology doesn't allow an observer
to distinguish between these states -- in all of these cases,
people  are discouraged from expressing any opinion at all.

I think everyone who isn't (d) should respond to the sraw polls,
even if to say (a) or (b) or (c).

As long as the responses are brief, there shouldn't be any downside to
gathering more information from everyone. Right now the chairs are telling
people if they respond with (a) (b) or (c) that their answer
will be IGNORED, which doesn't actually make sense because the
results are public and they may or may not be IGNORED by the
chairs.

This information should also help the chairs be more neutral
in deciding whether they think an argument is "strong", because
it allows individuals to indicate in situation (a) how much
they agree or disagree.

This would be much better than relying on the chair(s) to decide
whether they personally think an argument is "strong", because of
course, different people are moved by different kinds of arguments,
agree or disagree with assumptions, etc.

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Received on Thursday, 13 May 2010 22:21:38 UTC