- From: Andrew Layman <andrewl@microsoft.com>
- Date: Mon, 19 May 1997 09:52:45 -0700
- To: w3c-sgml-wg@w3.org
There have been some good arguments against short end tags, and some good arguments advanced in favor of them, but one category of argument we should avoid is the "slippery slope" one. It is essentially saying "Don't give sweets to kids, because that leads to smoking, and then marijuana, and before you know it they are doing heavy drugs in some crack house in New York . . . " If there are no good reasons for short end tags, and we put them in anyway, then--and only then--does it begin a slippery slope of putting in bad features. But, if short end tags have actual value, and if they are different in character from other abbreviations, then there is no slippery slope. That is, the slippery-slope-syllogism is valid only if its major premise (short end tags are bad) is true; else it is just circular reasoning. So, let's concentrate on the main argument: Are short end tags different in character from OMITTAG, SHORTREF etc.? Do they have compelling value for certain applications such as data transfer?
Received on Monday, 19 May 1997 12:53:13 UTC