Post #1855827
2026-05-01 15:03 UTC
1/
For decades, there has been a debate about what specifications published under organizational bodies (e.g., IETF) or community groups (e.g., FEP) are actually for.
Are they meant to:
№1:
Document what people are already doing?
I.e., what some call the cows path.
№2:
When people are doing similar but incompatible things — and you are able to get those people all into a working-group together —
Document the agreement those people made to interoperate.
№3:
Invent something new.
...
Replies (1)
-
@reiver@mastodon.social 2026-05-01 15:05
2/ An example of №1 is the (now old) finger-protocol. The finger-protocol existed at least 6 years before the first specification about the finger-protocol (IETF RFC-742) was first published. I.e., the finger-protocol existed first, and the specification came much later. ...