RE: Bug in MS webfolder client: Content-Language header when PUTting

I agree, system language should not be assumed for content.

My system language is en-us, my date-time preference is ISO
("yyyy-mm-dd-hh:mm -0700" 24-hour local time), my Internet language
preferences are (1) Italian and then (2) English (American).  My settings
for menus and windows are Italian.  At the moment I have content on my
machine in English (mostly American, both transatlantic flavors), Italian,
Spanish, German and Japanese.  I have some files in Russian and a variety of
central European languages -- intermixed.  This is happening more and more.

The system language setting is not a reliable indicator of content language.
I think it is better to say nothing than to assume something based on the
coincidence of a default that actually has little technical relationship to
content.

I think the architectural principle that applies here is one of not solving
problems that are not ones we created.  Compensating for a problem that
arises elsewhere (a practice that has led to no end of troubles with mail
servers) at a point where there is inadequate information is, in my
experience, an open invitation to system disintegration.

-- Dennis

-----Original Message-----
From: w3c-dist-auth-request@w3.org
[mailto:w3c-dist-auth-request@w3.org]On Behalf Of Julian Reschke
Sent: Friday, June 14, 2002 23:20
To: Lisa Dusseault; 'Julian Reschke'
Cc: Webdav WG (E-mail)
Subject: RE: Bug in MS webfolder client: Content-Language header when
PUTting



> From: w3c-dist-auth-request@w3.org
> [mailto:w3c-dist-auth-request@w3.org]On Behalf Of Lisa Dusseault
> Sent: Saturday, June 15, 2002 12:58 AM
> To: 'Julian Reschke'
> Cc: Webdav WG (E-mail)
> Subject: RE: Bug in MS webfolder client: Content-Language header when
> PUTting
>
>
>
> Have you investigated whether Web Folders submits a
> Content-Language header
> with a different value if the user's system language is not
> "en-us"?  It may

May system's language indeed is not "en-us", but that's what the client is
submitting.

> be that the user's system language is the closed Web Folders can get to
> knowing the language of the file.
>
> If that is the case, then I would think it would be wrong of the WebDAV
> server to ignore the value.

It would still be the wrong value. A system default is not good enough. If a
client doesn't know the content language, it MUST not submit it.

Received on Saturday, 15 June 2002 11:38:53 UTC