RE: Fonts WG Charter feedback

Håkon,
  The purpose of a Font Working Group is to help ensure that all font vendors can participate in supplying WebFonts. This has nothing to do with the CSS specification for Web Fonts which is font format neutral. Each UA is free to choose which font formats it will support. So creating a Font Working Group says nothing about the basic CSS specification for Web Fonts. Therefore, it seems disingenuous to say that creating a Font Working Group is saying something about the readiness of Web Fonts. 

You may have chosen to support a particular set of formats that you will support. That is consistent with the specification. Other browser vendors may have chosen other formats to support. To get universal support for formats that will enable Web Fonts it is worth trying to enable all participants rather than only a few. The goal of the W3C is to bring the Web to its full potential; not to limit the web to one person's (or 4 browsers') view of that potential.

If there is no need for another format, then time will establish that fact. It is clear that a number of people believe there is a need for another format at this time. You do not have to participate nor implement any new format. Let the interested organizations develop what they believe is needed and then see if the audience of developers responds. 

Steve Zilles, Adobe Systems Incorporated.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: www-style-request@w3.org [mailto:www-style-request@w3.org] On Behalf
> Of Håkon Wium Lie
> Sent: Saturday, June 27, 2009 6:59 AM
> To: www-style@w3.org
> Subject: Fonts WG Charter feedback
> 
> I don't think W3C should create a Font Working Group as per the
> proposed charter:
> 
>   http://www.w3.org/2009/03/fonts-wg-charter
> 
> By creating a Working Group, W3C signals that webfonts are not yet
> ready for use, and that more technical work is necessary. This is not
> the case.
> 
> We have four interoperable implementations of webfonts: Gecko, Presto,
> Prince, Webkit.
> 
> These implementations have followed W3C Recommendations when
> implementing web fonts, and W3C should support the efforts (e.g., by
> using web fonts on their pages) rather than sending a "wait!" signal.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> -h&kon
>               Håkon Wium Lie                          CTO °þe®ª
> howcome@opera.com                  http://people.opera.com/howcome
> 
>

Received on Sunday, 28 June 2009 20:19:12 UTC