Re: Dropping 'gopher', 'wais', 'prospero'

Larry Masinter scripsit:

> While gopher is implemented, it is not widely implementation,
> implementations are declining rather than rising
> http://gopher.floodgap.com/gopher/,  and there is no interest
> in further work, updating gopher or advancement.

These are good arguments for making a gopher URI RFC and marking it
Historic, but not for abandoning it altogether.  The wais and prospero
URIs, OTOH, never had significant implementation and can IMHO be
allowed to languish in Obsolete status.

> Certainly there may be some interest in preserving
> antique protocols for fun and amusement, but there's
> no point in advancing them along standards track.

Agreed; hence the utility of Historic status.

> I see real value in updating 'file', 'ftp' and (to some
> degree) 'telnet' to match their actual use, and I appreciate
> the effort to bring them along and advance them on
> standards track.

Agreed.

-- 
Real FORTRAN programmers can program FORTRAN    John Cowan
in any language.  --Allen Brown                 jcowan@reutershealth.com

Received on Friday, 22 October 2004 13:30:48 UTC