Re: W3C Specification for CSS Level 2: Unanswered question in copyright notice ....

Apartment223 wrote:
> Bryan, TX, 7:48 PM 7/29/2002
>  
> To Whom It May Concern:
>  
> Good evening.
>  
> I am currently developing a CSS editor, which will reach its final stage 
> of development very soon.
> 
> I based most of its development on the W3C's Recommendation for CSS 
> Level 2.
>  
> It is a commercial software, but I was wondering if you would be kind 
> enough to grant me the right me to add in the package the complete HTML 
> version of the Specification, as a *free* and convenient tutorial that 
> would be accessible (offLine) from within the application, and navigated 
> through by means of navigational links on the application interface in 
> which it would be embedded.

I believe the usage you describe falls within the scope of the
document use notice [1]. You need to include a link to the
source document at the W3C site, and include the original
copyright statement and status section.

See also:

  'We request that authorship attribution be provided in any
   software, documents, or other items or products that you create
   pursuant to the implementation of the contents of this document,
   or any portion thereof.'

And copyright FAQ question 5.2 [2].

[1] http://www.w3.org/Consortium/Legal/copyright-documents-19990405
[2] http://www.w3.org/Consortium/Legal/IPR-FAQ-20000620.html#mirrors
>  
> Please note that I do not need to alter the documents in any way, but 
> merely to make its pages relevant to the application quickly accessible 
> without forcing the user to either work onLine or to open a browser window.

Right: 'No right to create modifications or derivatives of W3C 
documents is granted pursuant to this license. '

> As the four major browsers are getting closer to a full implementation 
> of CSS2 (except maybe for aural styleSheets), I would like my future 
> users to base their knowledge of CSS on your Specification for CSS2, 
> which I found to be clear, concise and very accurate, in other words, 
> the best CSS tutorial available onLine.

Glad to hear it. :)

> Secondly, I would like to know if I need any kind of permission from the 
> W3C to allow the user of the application to use, when onLine, the CSS 
> Validator on your site to validate styleSheets created from within the 
> application.

That sounds like a good idea. I do not think there is any problem
providing a link to http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/ from
your software. You should probably acknowledge it as the W3C CSS
Validation Service.

> Please, do respond and let me know how to go from there; I think it may 
> be in our common interest that I get this permission, in that it will 
> spare me the paraphrasing of this huge Specification, and will help 
> spread the standards of CSS much better than the superficial CSS 
> Tutorials generally accompanying similar applications, which I would 
> have to have recourse to in case of a refusal on your part because of 
> lack of time.
>  
> Nothing bothers me more than to add pages of compatibility issues, and 
> cannot wait until the day when your edicts will strictly be adhered to 
> by the browser developers.
>  
> In advance, and in any case, thank you for your time and attention, as 
> well as for making such a high quality reference freely available onLine.
>  
> I am looking forward to reading back from you.

Good luck, and thanks for implementing CSS2!

  _ Ian

>  
> Sincerely,
>  
> Charles-Eric Sesiano.


-- 
Ian Jacobs (ij@w3.org)   http://www.w3.org/People/Jacobs
Tel:                     +1 718 260-9447

Received on Tuesday, 30 July 2002 08:26:13 UTC