Justication for the RFC-HTML Effort
Back to RFC-HTML Development Page.
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HTML is becoming the standard format for information representation on
the Internet.
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The use of hyperlinks allows extraordinarily powerful, non-linear
access to information spaces. This should be especially useful for the
RFC series, which cross-reference each other extensively.
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Nearly every host on the Internet today has a Web browser, and almost
all users are familiar with their function.
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HTML provides for a very rich presentation of content, including such
features as headers, tables, emphasis, etc.
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The availability of text-based browsers such as Lynx allows Web
access by those with fairly limited equipment, without reducing the
quality of the rendering by graphical browsers.
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Many RFCs are already created using Web-based distributed authoring,
and this seems only likely to grow as standards are created and tools
improve. Thus, many RFCs are already written in HTML snd more seem
likely to be in the future. The IETF should lead this process rather
than be dragged along by it.
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Using "lynx -dump" and a little postprocessing, HTML RFCs can be
rendered in a the "traditional" RFC plain ASCII text.
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HTML is an open standard, specified by the W3C.
Note that while these reasons are designed to justify the use of a third
format (besides ASCII text and Postscript), they may eventually be found
compelling enough to justify making HTML the single archival format for
RFCs and similar documents.
(This is based on some meditations by Dan Kohn. I have reordered,
lightly edited, and slightly amplified it.)
Back to RFC-HTML Development Page.
Eric S. Raymond <esr@snark.thyrsus.com>