Re: Title of the HTML5 document

Maciej Stachowiak wrote:

> I find Roy's proposed title misleading as to the contents of the spec, 
> as well as objectionable on the grounds that it tries to disparage the 
> spec.

> For example, if someone suggested they would no longer object 
> to the spec if it were titled "HTML5: A Filthy Pack of Lies", then of 
> course we should decline and take that suggestion as actually a 
> backhanded way of criticizing the body of the spec. Similarly for 
> "HTML5: A Spec for Only a Few Situations But Not Really the Real Spec".

> While "Uniform Browser Behavior for the Web" is not quite in that 
> category, it is suggested with the intent of denying that the spec is a 
> proper spec for HTML version 5.

Please refrain from inferring less-than-honorable intents and proposing 
strawman.

The front matter of the document, while overwhelmingly editorial, does 
serve an important function.  It defines the goals of the document. 
Much of Ian's criticism of "HTML 5: The Markup Language" either took the 
form of questioning the goals of that document, or identifying ways in 
which the document itself did not meet its stated goals.

At the present time, the current draft explicitly contradicts in a 
number of important ways a number of other standards, standards by the 
W3C and other bodies.

One way to address this is to remove the contradictions.

Another way to address this is to describe this document in terms that 
nobody can question.  "Unform Browser Behavior" is one such way. 
Perhaps there are better ways of addressing this, but I doubt there are 
any that are more concise.

- Sam Ruby

Received on Monday, 25 May 2009 11:09:51 UTC