XHTML2: Status of XHTML 2.0 comments

Dear HTML Working Group,

  Back in mid September 2004 I've asked what the status of all the XHTML
2.0 issues is that reviewers have brought to the attention of the WG
since the publication of the first Working Draft,

  http://www.w3.org/mid/418761c9.447891764@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de

I've asked especially in the light of the fact that the Working Group
rejected change requests long ago without actually telling the reviewer,

  http://www.w3.org/mid/41798b6d.393015616@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de

Unfortunately I've got no response to my inquiry and according to some
of the reviewers involved, you have still not made meaningful progress
on formally addressing these comments. I know for sure that the WG has
not addressed a single comment of those that I've submitted so far on
the document, for example none of 

  http://www.w3.org/mid/418eabe3.466861160@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de
  http://www.w3.org/mid/412cd93e.866696553@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de
  http://www.w3.org/mid/41c26a21.619237406@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de
  http://www.w3.org/mid/4184c275.318109327@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de
  http://www.w3.org/mid/3faa04b3.226926613@smtp.bjoern.hoehrmann.de

has been addressed (and my first comment dates September 2003). It
appears that other reviewers made similar experience, for example:

  http://www.w3.org/mid/20041101175454.GA18889@homer.w3.org
  http://www.w3.org/mid/200409161121.14332.Christian.Hujer@itcqis.com

Now considering that <http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/xhtml-roadmap/> the WG
planned to go to Last Call in September 2004 (and exit Last Call in
November 2004) and considering past experience with the HTML Working
Group, I am concerned that the HTML Working Group is going to request
advancement to Last Call for XHTML 2.0 without meeting the relevant
entrance criteria which include formally addressing all comments that
have been raised by reviewers on the previous Working Drafts.

There is no point in publication of a Last Call Working Draft without
formally addressing these comments first, reviewers would not know
whether they have to re-submit their comments and if they are they might
not manage to do this within the Last Call timeframe, and it is likely
that on Last Call review, many issues would be raised again which wastes
reviewer time and Working Group resources. Also, it would seem that such
a Last Call review will result in many substantive changes requiring the
Director to return the document back to the Working Group for further
work, which would require another Last Call review, likely causing even
more delay for the document.

I still hope that you will meet all Last Call entrance criteria for the
XHTML 2.0 Last Call, but in case the HTML Working Group decides to re-
quest advancement to Last Call without formally addressing all comments
submitted so far, please report my formal objection to this decision to
the Director.

In case of the former, I would still appreciate if you could respond to
my original inquiry on www-html so the community is aware of your plans
and reviewers have a chance to plan for future reviews of XHTML 2.0 and
acknowledging your substantive responses; some reviewers raised quite a
number of issues and some of them will most certainly require more than
a week to consider your responses. From the Process document I would in
fact have expected that you have already published such a status report
after you have been excused from the "heartbeat" requirement by the W3C
Director; maybe I've missed it? In that case, I would appreciate a
pointer to the report.

regards.
-- 
Björn Höhrmann · mailto:bjoern@hoehrmann.de · http://bjoern.hoehrmann.de
Weinh. Str. 22 · Telefon: +49(0)621/4309674 · http://www.bjoernsworld.de
68309 Mannheim · PGP Pub. KeyID: 0xA4357E78 · http://www.websitedev.de/

Received on Thursday, 2 December 2004 15:09:33 UTC