- From: Anton Prowse <prowse@moonhenge.net>
- Date: Sat, 14 Mar 2009 18:58:35 +0100
- To: "www-style@w3.org" <www-style@w3.org>
- CC: Bert Bos <bert@w3.org>
Congratulations on a very solid-looking specification!
Here are the things that I noticed when reading through the document.
(Trivial editorial issues are listed separately at the end.)
6.3. Attribute selectors
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#attribute-selectors)
:
# [att~=val] Represents an element with the att attribute whose
# value is a whitespace-separated list of words, one of which is
# exactly "val". If "val" contains whitespace, it will never represent
# anything (since the words are separated by spaces). Also if "val" is
# the empty string, it will never represent anything.
Issue 1: Intuitively one might expect that if "val" were the empty
string it would represent an element with the att attribute whose value
is the empty string, rather than fail to represent anything. (HTML5
currently proposes that <img>, <img alt=""> and <img alt="bar"> have
different semantics, for example, and so there is a use case for such
matching.) If such matching is truly not permitted, perhaps it is worth
explicitly stating that. (The equivalent situation with the
substring-matching attribute selectors seems reasonable as specified,
however.)
6.3.1. Attribute presence and value selectors
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#attribute-representation)
:
# Attribute values must be identifiers or strings.
Issue 2a: The term "identifier" is undefined. (Same issue exists in
6.3.2.)
Issue 2b: The term "string" string is undefined, but is presumed to be
an identifier delimited by " marks. What about ' and other marks?
(Same issue exists in 6.3.2.)
6.6.4. The UI element states pseudo-classes
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#UIstates) :
# Most elements will be neither :enabled nor :disabled.
Issue 3: This sentence is meaningless for general document languages.
6.6.5. Structural pseudo-classes
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#structural-pseudos) :
# Standalone pieces of PCDATA (text nodes in the DOM) and other
# non-element nodes are not counted when calculating the position of
# an element in the list of children of its parent.
Issue 4: Neither "PCDATA" nor "DOM" are defined in this document.
"PCDATA" is not used anywhere else in the document, and "DOM" is only
used once more in normative text, in the subsection ':empty
pseudo-class' of this section.
6.6.5 :nth-child() pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#nth-child-pseudo) :
# The :nth-child(an+b) pseudo-class notation represents an element
# that has an+b-1 siblings before it in the document tree, for a given
# positive integer or zero value of n, and has a parent element.
Issue 5a: s/for a given/for some/. Ditto for the description of the
other related pseudo-elements.
# In other words, this matches the bth child of an element after all
# the children have been split into groups of a elements each.
Issue 5b: It matches the bth child *of each group* after the children
have been partitioned into groups (the last group having possibly fewer
than 'a' elements). Also, the sentence makes no sense when either a or
b is zero or negative. The sentence is not necessary, will be too long
when corrected to accurately explain modular arithmetic, and should be
omitted altogether. Ditto for the description of the :nth-of-type()
pseudo-class.
# Examples:
# [...]
# p:nth-child(4n+1) { color: navy; }
# p:nth-child(4n+2) { color: green; }
# p:nth-child(4n+3) { color: maroon; }
# p:nth-child(4n+4) { color: purple; }
Issue 5c: It is much more natural to use :nth-child(4n) than
:nth-child(4n+4) (although you would then want it to be first in the
list rather than last). It was probably avoided because the case b=0
has not yet been discussed so far in the document --- but there is a
precedent higher up in the example: :nth-child( +6 ).
# When a=0, the an part need not be included (unless the b part is
# already omitted). When an is not included, the + sign before b (when
# allowed) may also be omitted.
Issue 5d: s/When an is not included, the + sign before b (when allowed)
may also be omitted/When an is not included and b is non-negative, a +
sign before b may also be omitted/
Issue 5e: There is no discussion in this subsection of the omission of
the + sign before a, which is curious given that all other possible
omissions are discussed.
# In this case the syntax simplifies to :nth-child(b) and the last
# example simplifies to :nth-child(5).
Issue 5f: The only unsimplified cases which simplifies to :nth-child(5)
when a is zero and b is non-negative are :nth-child(0n+5) and
:nth-child(-0n+5), neither of which are the last (or indeed any) example.
6.6.5 :empty pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#empty-pseudo) :
# The :empty pseudo-class represents an element that has no children
# at all. In terms of the DOM, only element nodes and text nodes
# (including CDATA nodes and entity references) whose data has a
# non-zero length must be considered as affecting emptiness; comments,
# PIs, and other nodes must not affect whether an element is
# considered empty or not.
Issue 6: Neither "DOM", "CDATA" nor "PI" are defined in this document.
Neither "CDATA" nor "PI" is used anywhere else in the document, and
"DOM" is only used once more in normative text, in the introduction to
this section.
7.1. The ::first-line pseudo-element
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#first-line) :
# In CSS, the ::first-line pseudo-element can only be attached to a
# block-level element, an inline-block, a table-caption, or a
# table-cell.
Issue 7a: This does not really add anything to the
discussion, and runs the risk of becoming incorrect as other parts of
the CSS specification change. It could be removed. A more general
statement should be inserted in the introduction to Section 7, stating
that the applicability of pseudo-elements may be dependent on the nature
of the subjects of the selector. (This statement should be inserted
even if the paragraph is not removed.)
# A UA should act as if the fictional start tags of the ::first-line
# pseudo-elements were nested just inside the innermost enclosing
# block-level element. (Since CSS1 and CSS2 were silent on this case,
# authors should not rely on this behavior.) Here is an example. The
# fictional tag sequence for [...]
Issue 7b: Should the parenthetical sentence be a note? It seems out of
place in normative text.
7.2. The ::first-letter pseudo-element
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#first-letter) :
# The ::first-letter pseudo-element represents the first letter of
# the first line of a block, if it is not preceded by any other
# content (such as images or inline tables) on its line. The
# ::first-letter pseudo-element may be used for "initial caps" and
# "drop caps", which are common typographical effects. This type of
# initial letter is similar to an inline-level element if its 'float'
# property is 'none'; otherwise, it is similar to a floated element.
Issue 8a: In the first sentence, what is a "block"?
# The ::first-letter pseudo-element can be used with all such
# elements that contain text, or that have a descendant in the same
# flow that contains text.
Issue 8b: s/such/applicable/
8.2. Child combinators
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#child-combinators) :
# A child combinator describes a childhood relationship between two
# elements. A child combinator is made of the "greater-than sign" (>)
# character and separates two sequences of simple selectors.
Issue 9: s/"greater-than sign" (>)/"greater-than sign" (U+003E, >)/
Trivial editorial matters
-------------------------
General comments :
Issue 10: Notes are currently not displayed consistently, cf "Note:",
"Note.", subsequent capital letter or lowercase letter. All notes
should begin with "Note:" or similar; currently this is not the case in
6.6.1, 6.6.5, 7, 7.1 and 7.2.
1. Introduction
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#context) :
# Selectors Level 1 and Selectors Level 2 are defined as the subsets
# of functionality defined in the CSS1 and CSS2.1 specifications,
# respectively.
Issue 11: s/functionality/selector functionality/
6.3.4. Default attribute values in DTDs
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#def-values) :
# Example:
#
# Consider an element EXAMPLE
Issue 12: EXAMPLE should be typeset in the same monospace font as used
for element names elsewhere in the examples. Ditto the example in 6.4.
Class selectors.
6.6.4. The UI element states pseudo-classes
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#UIstates) :
# The :checked pseudo-class
#
# Radio and checkbox elements can be toggled by the user. Some menu
# items are "checked" when the user selects them. When such elements
# are toggled "on" the :checked pseudo-class applies. The :checked
# pseudo-class initially applies to such elements that have the HTML4
# selected and checked attributes as described in Section 17.2.1 of
# HTML4, but of course the user can toggle "off" such elements in
# which case the :checked pseudo-class would no longer apply. While
# the :checked pseudo-class is dynamic in nature, and is altered by
# user action, since it can also be based on the presence of the
# semantic HTML4 selected and checked attributes, it applies to all
# media.
Issue 13: why such attention to HTML4 all of a sudden? Explanation of
the behaviour should be separated from examples (eg HTML4) which
illustrate that behaviour.
6.6.5 :nth-child() pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#nth-child-pseudo) :
# The :nth-child(an+b) pseudo-class notation represents an element
# that has an+b-1 siblings before it in the document tree, for a given
# positive integer or zero value of n, and has a parent element.
Issue 14: s/an+b-1/(s x n) + b - 1/
6.6.5 :nth-last-child() pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#nth-last-child-pseudo)
:
# See :nth-child() pseudo-class for the syntax of its argument.
Issue 15: Linkify the text to point to the relevant place in the document.
6.6.5 :last-of-type pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#last-of-type-pseudo)
:
# Example:
#
# The following selector represents the last data cell td of a table
# row.
Issue 16: s/a table row/a table row td/ or s/a table row/an HTML table row/
6.6.5. :first-child pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#first-child-pseudo) :
# Examples:
#
# [...]
#
# This selector can represent the p inside the div of the following
# fragment:
#
# [...]
#
# but cannot represent the second p in the following fragment:
#
# [...]
Issue 17: s/fragment/HTML fragment/ (twice)
6.6.5 :empty pseudo-class
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#empty-pseudo) :
# Examples:
#
# p:empty is a valid representation of the following fragment:
#
# <p></p>
#
# foo:empty is not a valid representation for the following fragments:
#
# [...]
Issue 18: s/fragment/HTML fragment/ (twice)
6.6.6. Blank
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#UIfragments) :
# This section intentionally left blank.
Issue 19: Append a description of what was previously defined here. Cf
7.3. Blank.
7. Pseudo-elements
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#pseudo-elements) :
# Pseudo-elements create abstractions about the document tree beyond
# those specified by the document language. For instance, document
# languages do not offer mechanisms to access the first letter or
# first line of an element's content. Pseudo-elements allow designers
# to refer to this otherwise inaccessible information. Pseudo-elements
# may also provide designers a way to refer to content that does not
# exist in the source document (e.g., the ::before and ::after
# pseudo-elements give access to generated content).
Issue 20a: The wording of the first two sentences makes it sound like
this is a limitation in the document language, but in the case of
accessing the first line, this is something which is /meaningless/ in
the document language.
Issue 20b: The reference to "designers" seems incongruous and does not
appear in normative text anywhere else in the specification.
s/designers/authors/ and ditto in the Note in 6.5. ID selectors.
7.1. The ::first-line pseudo-element
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#first-line) :
# CSS example:
#
# p::first-line { text-transform: uppercase }
#
# The above rule means "change the letters of the first line of every
# paragraph to uppercase".
Issue 21a: s/paragraph/p element/ or s/CSS example/CSS and HTML Example/
# The selector p::first-line does not match any real HTML element. It
# does match a pseudo-element that conforming user agents will insert
# at the beginning of every paragraph.
Issue 21b: s/The selector p::first-line/In an HTML document, for
example, the selector p::first-line/
# The "first formatted line" of an element may occur inside a
# block-level descendant in the same flow (i.e., a block-level
# descendant that is not positioned and not a float). E.g., the first
# line of the div in <DIV><P>This line...</P></DIV> is the first line
# of the p (assuming that both p and div are block-level).
#
# The first line of a table-cell or inline-block cannot be the first
# formatted line of an ancestor element. Thus, in
#
# <DIV><P STYLE="display: inline-block">Hello<BR>Goodbye</P>
# etcetera</DIV> the first formatted line of the div is not the line
# "Hello".
Issue 21c: s/E.g., the first line of the div in <DIV>/E.g., the first
line of the div in the HTML fragment <DIV>/
or
s/div/DIV/ (twice) and s/p/P/ (twice)
Issue 21d: Prepend "In CSS, " to the latter two paragraphs.
Issue 21e: s/Here is an example. The fictional tag sequence for/For
example, the fictional tag sequence for the HTML fragment/
# The ::first-line pseudo-element is similar to an inline-level
# element, but with certain restrictions. In CSS, the following
# properties apply to a ::first-line pseudo-element: font properties,
# color property, background properties, 'word-spacing',
# 'letter-spacing', 'text-decoration', 'vertical-align',
# 'text-transform', 'line-height'. UAs may apply other properties as
# well.
Issue 21f: "In CSS" should be placed at the start of the first
sentence, not the second.
Issue 21g: Should the following be inserted after the second sentence?
"A future version of this specification may allow this pseudo-element to
apply to more element types." Cf. 7.2.
# During CSS inheritance, the portion of a child element that occurs
# on the first line only inherits properties applicable to the
# ::first-line pseudo-element from the ::first-line pseudo-element.
# For all other properties inheritance is from the non-pseudo-element
# parent of the first line pseudo element. (The portion of a child
# element that does not occur on the first line always inherits from
# the parent of that child.)
Issue 21h: Prepend the last sentence with "In CSS, ". I interpret that
sentence as a reminder of CSS behaviour, and so it might be better as a
Note.
7.2. The ::first-letter pseudo-element
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#first-letter) :
# The ::first-letter pseudo-element represents the first letter of
# the first line of a block, if it is not preceded by any other
# content (such as images or inline tables) on its line. The
# ::first-letter pseudo-element may be used for "initial caps" and
# "drop caps", which are common typographical effects. This type of
# initial letter is similar to an inline-level element if its 'float'
# property is 'none'; otherwise, it is similar to a floated element.
Issue 22a: Prepend the last sentence with "In CSS, ".
# In CSS, these are the properties that apply to ::first-letter
# pseudo-elements: font properties, 'text-decoration',
# 'text-transform', 'letter-spacing', 'word-spacing' (when
# appropriate), 'line-height', 'float', 'vertical-align' (only if
# 'float' is 'none'), margin properties, padding properties, border
# properties, color property, background properties.
Issue 22b: Should the following be inserted after that sentence? "A
future version of this specification may redefine which properties apply
to this pseudo-element." Cf. 7.2.
# Example:
#
# This example shows a possible rendering of an initial cap.
Issue 22c: s/Example:/CSS and HTML Example/
# Example:
#
# The fictional tag sequence for this HTMLfragment:
Issue 22d: s/HTMLfragment/HTML fragment/
# The first letter of a table-cell or inline-block cannot be the
# first letter of an ancestor element. Thus, in
# <DIV><P STYLE="display: inline-block">Hello<BR>Goodbye</P>
# etcetera</DIV> the first letter of the div is not the letter "H". In
# fact, the div doesn't have a first letter.
#
# The first letter must occur on the first formatted line. For
# example, in this fragment: <p><br>First... the first line doesn't
# contain any letters and ::first-letter doesn't match anything
# (assuming the default style for br in HTML 4). In particular, it
# does not match the "F" of "First."
Issue 22e: Prepend the first sentence with "In CSS, " .
Issue 22f: s/in this fragment/in this HTML fragment/
# Example:
#
# After the rule 'p::before {content: "Note: "}', the selector
# 'p::first-letter' matches the "N" of "Note".
#
# Note: In some cases the ::first-letter pseudo-element should
# include more than just the first non-punctuation character on a
# line. For example, combining characters must be kept with their base
# character. Additionally, some languages may have specific rules
# about how to treat certain letter combinations. The UA definition of
# ::first-letter should include at least the default grapheme cluster
# as defined by UAX29 and may include more than that as appropriate.
# In Dutch, for example, if the letter combination "ij" appears at the
# beginning of an element, both letters should be considered within
# the ::first-letter pseudo-element. [UAX29]
#
# If the letters that would form the ::first-letter are not in the
# same element, such as "'T" in <p>'<em>T..., the UA may create a
# ::first-letter pseudo-element from one of the elements, both
# elements, or simply not create a pseudo-element.
Issue 22g: Typeset the selectors and rules in a monospace font as is
done elsewhere in the specification, and remove the surrounding
apostrophes.
# Example:
#
# The following example illustrates how overlapping pseudo-elements
# may interact. [...]
Issue 22h: s/Example/CSS and HTML Example/
8.1. Descendant combinator
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#descendant-combinators)
:
# Examples:
#
# For example, consider the following selector:
#
# h1 em
#
# It represents an em element being the descendant of an h1 element.
# It is a correct and valid, but partial, description of the following
# fragment:
#
# <h1>This <span class="myclass">headline
# is <em>very</em> important</span></h1>
#
# The following selector:
#
# div * p
#
# represents a p element that is a grandchild or later descendant of
# a div element. Note the whitespace on either side of the "*" is not
# part of the universal selector; the whitespace is a combinator
# indicating that the DIV must be the ancestor of some element, and
# that that element must be an ancestor of the P.
Issue 23a: s/fragment/HTML fragment/
Issue 23b: s/DIV/div/ and s/P/p/ and typeset both in a monospace font.
8.3.2. General sibling combinator
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#general-sibling-combinators)
:
# Example:
#
# h1 ~ pre
#
# represents a pre element following an h1. It is a correct and
# valid, but partial, description of:
#
# <h1>Definition of the function a</h1>
# <p>Function a(x) has to be applied to all figures in the table.</p>
# <pre>function a(x) = 12x/13.5</pre>
Issue 24: s/description of/description of the following HTML fragment/
10.1. Grammar
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-selectors-20090310/#grammar) :
# [...] note that most UA's should not use it directly [...]
Issue 25: s/UA's/UAs/
Cheers,
Anton Prowse
http://dev.moonhenge.net
Received on Saturday, 14 March 2009 17:59:33 UTC