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[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message] Re: OASIS and XML-DEV
 I have been involved in a number of private mails over the last few days about XML-DEV - not everything is appropriate for this list. (I and Henry really *do* care about the future of the list, very passionately, and we want to help the list take positive steps forward.) We have been very heartened by the number of constructive suggestions and *** whatever happens *** we need to take a more expansive view of the future. To summarise the position at present. Many people are seriously unhappy about the present state of the list, to the extent that they feel it is in danger of collapsing or withering. The primary *technical* concerns are (a) uptime (b) response time (c) state of archive OASIS are aware of these problems and stated on 2000-04-13 that there would be improvements in 10 days. That is four days from now. I have privately communicated my concerns. There has been some discussion about the role of OASIS in the community. No one from OASIS (fulltime or volunteer) other than Laura Walker has posted anything to this list recently. It has been suggested that I take a lead in coordinating ways forward. I think we should give OASIS till 04-23 before making any formal move. However I suggest we think positively about several suggestions: (a) what role can and should OASIS play? I think it is incumbent on them to give us a vision of what they can do. I am more concerned about the apparent unconcern from OASIS members than I am about technical issues. I can conceive of a situation where OASIS play a different role from the one they do now. (b) What additional features should XML-DEV include. I like the idea of CVS pages for projects - think we have a critical mass and it would work very well. (c) are there affordable technical solutions which are preferable to the current one? Several people have made suggestions and I think they should be taken seriously. There are clearly servers which provide list-like support and which cost little/nothing in cash terms. My view of OASIS has been based on the volunteers within it that I know and highly respect and the excellent service that it has given through facilities like Robin Cover's work. I also highly approve of the NIST/OASIS conformance testing. Therefore when Henry and I were approached 10 months ago it seemed a worthwhile thing to follow up. I was also approached in XML Europe 1999 by board members to collaborate on another project. Since then my view of OASIS has changed - maybe I had an unclear vision or maybe OASIS actually is different now. I regret to say that I think it is more bureaucratic and less oriented towards individuals. Personally I feel a sense of exclusion - it is unrealistic to expect academics to pay USD250 to join an organisation to which they provide voluntary services. I had hoped to see OASIS have a central role in which individuals can feel welcome. Since XML-DEV depends completely on the voluntary ethic we must continue to explore this. If OASIS can help - great. It is up to them to suggest how. I think there are opportunities for a hybrid solution, but they have to be responsive. If not, we shall lose our vitality. I was remarking, sadly, to one correspondent how few academics and students there are in XML. Most come from the SGML days, and that includes me. This must be an area in which XML-DEV has something to contribute. P. *************************************************************************** This is xml-dev, the mailing list for XML developers. To unsubscribe, mailto:majordomo@x...&BODY=unsubscribe%20xml-dev List archives are available at http://xml.org/archives/xml-dev/ *************************************************************************** 
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