xml-dev - standards body discussion - would anyone come?

["Simon St.Laurent" <simonstl@simonstl.com>]

Ken North has pointed out a number of times that the issues being discussed
here affect more than XML, and I suspect a large number of readers here
would also be happy to point out that these issues don't affect them directly.

XML-Dev is, however, one of the few forums where these discussions catch
fire.  Its participants have (in my experience) a unique combination of
experience with the relevant organizations and a more pressing need for the
latest specifications on a regular basis, as well as occasional tendencies
to organize their own specs.

I'd love to find a place for discussions of standards development
organizations (ad hoc, de facto, and official), their relationships to
various projects and each other, and the processes by which different
groups operate.

On the other hand, I'm not sure that such a place would be popular enough
to sustain discussion, and I'm not sure that enough players from the
various organizations would be willing to talk in public.  Making this work
would require more than just the usual suspects showing up.

Ken's gotten discussion going at Dr. Dobbs' Journal, and discussion is
continuing strong here, but I think I'd like to see something more on the
scale of a Web site with archived mailing lists and information covering
different options for individuals and organizations who want to participate
in different kinds of standards.

I'm dreaming, but if anyone's interested, let me know.  My schedule opens
up a little bit _after_ the end of this month, so maybe we could make
something happen.

Simon St.Laurent
XML Elements of Style / XML: A Primer, 2nd Ed.
XHTML: Migrating Toward XML
http://www.simonstl.com - XML essays and books