Re: ERB call on addressing from Gavin Nicol on 1997-03-25 (w3c-sgml-wg@w3.org from March 1997)

From: Gavin Nicol <gtn@eps.inso.com>
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 03:33:42 GMT
To: Bill.Smith@eng.sun.com
CC: w3c-sgml-wg@w3.org
Message-Id: <199703250333.DAA16709@wiley.EBT.COM>

>Unfortunately, the new Berners-Lee/Fielding/Masinter draft appears to 
>contradict RFC 1808 with respest to parameters.
>
>   "Extensive testing of current client applications demonstrated that
>   the majority of deployed systems do not use the ";" character to
>   indicate trailing parameter information, ..."
>
>Our application certainly makes use of ";" to indicate trailing parameters
>and I suspect will break if this draft is adopted unmodified. I'd hesitate to
>use the "new" Berners-Lee/Fielding/Masinter syntax unless it has already 
>become an RFC.

RFC's must codify existing practise. The real rule for the IETF is
"if you have widely deployed working code, you're right".

Parameters are useful, and help separate the semantics of various
components for certain applications.

Received on Monday, 24 March 1997 22:35:28 UTC