[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message]

Re: W3C and XML mailing list status

• From: "C. M. Sperberg-McQueen" <cmsmcq@blackmesatech.com>
• To: Marcus Reichardt <u123724@gmail.com>
• Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2022 17:20:43 -0700

Marcus Reichardt <u123724@gmail.com> writes:

> Reaching out here to those on the list with ties to W3C (Liam,
> Michael, others?) if there are news to share regarding the continued
> activity of W3C in general, W3C's involvement as a major sponsor for
> markup conferences, and maybe the hosting of this mailing list (we do
> know that W3C's XML activity has stopped years ago). The twitter below
> left me a bit worried.

I suspect you are not the only one who found Robin Berjon's message
worrying, and I wish that I had further news of the current status.  I
don't; I know only what I learned from reading Robin's sequence of
postings. I am currently a participant in two W3C community groups but
have not been a member of the technical staff for some years.

On the specific concerns you mention:

  - Since W3C is and has always been a distributed organization, I
expect W3C technical activity and infrastructure including mailing lists
and the W3C web site to continue running, though it sounds as if life in
Cambridge may be chaotic in the near future, which will present
challenges.

  - I wasn't aware that W3C was a major financial supporter of any
conferences at all, so I don't expect any problems at W3C to affect any
markup conferences directly.  (But of course I have no direct knowledge
of the financial resources of most markup conferences; if anyone has
been getting money from W3C, my congratulations and I hope you continue
to do so.)

  - The xml-dev list will also continue running, I expect -- it's hosted
by Oasis, not by W3C.

Robin's postings sound grim to me in part because I imagine the leverage
in the negotiations may not be evenly distributed.  It's clear how the
party currently in control of the bank accounts can put pressure on the
other side; it's a little less clear to me how those with a stake in a
sustainable W3C, Inc., can put pressure on MIT.  If anyone on this list
has friendly relations with senior people at CSAIL, by all means contact
your friends and ask them to tell lab management and the MIT
administration to make a better offer than the one Robin described.  Or
if you have other ideas for moving things forward, contact Robin.  As he
said, "creative ideas to fix this situation are welcome."

Those who care about open standards and the web should give all the
moral support we can to those working to get W3C, Inc., started and make
it a sustainable venture.

Michael Sperberg-McQueen


> As you may recall: • MIT partly hosts W3C, but withdraws Dec 31 • A
> W3C nonprofit needs to take over on Jan 1 • MIT has assets (dues,
> contracts, IP…) to transfer to new W3C • I was elected to the W3C
> Board & in the negotiations Two weeks from cutover it's going…
> poorly. 🧵
> twitter.2.ico Robin Berjon | @robin@mastodon.social auf Twittertwitter.com  
> twitter.2.ico

-- 
C. M. Sperberg-McQueen
Black Mesa Technologies LLC
http://blackmesatech.com

• References:
  • W3C and XML mailing list status
    • From: Marcus Reichardt <u123724@gmail.com>