Re: CSS 2.1 draft comments and editorial problems

On Sun, 14 May 2006, Philip TAYLOR wrote:
> >>
> >> * Section 15.7 guides UAs to use font sizes "small" (2) and "xx-small"
> >>    (1) for heading levels h5 and h6.
> >>
> >>    That seems much too small.  Why should any headings be _smaller_
> >>    than regular text (text that defaults to "font-size: medium")?
> >
> > Because it's what Mosaic did in 1993. The spec doesn't require this, 
> > it merely points out that this is the typical thing.
> 
> It's hard to understand how "guidelines" (the term used by the specification)
> can be interpreted as "examples of current usage".  Surely "guidelines"
> /guide/, rather than merely /document/ ?

It's a guide, because any UA that wants to actually render the Web in a 
way even remotely compatible with existing browsers has to do this, 
because, in 1993, Mosaic set that as the default.


> I agree with Daniel's analysis, and recommend that this section be 
> re-worded to clarify that the table illustrates current practice based 
> on historical precedent rather than offering informed guidance to 
> recommended practice.

It _is_ informed guidance to recommended practice.

(Also, the working group is highly averse to making such minor wording 
changes at this juncture. This working draft has been a work in progress 
for over 8 years now, it is about time we stopped wordsmithing back and 
forth on such minor details as non-normative guidelines.)

-- 
Ian Hickson               U+1047E                )\._.,--....,'``.    fL
http://ln.hixie.ch/       U+263A                /,   _.. \   _\  ;`._ ,.
Things that are impossible just take longer.   `._.-(,_..'--(,_..'`-.;.'

Received on Saturday, 13 May 2006 23:54:17 UTC