Reinitialization of the XML Conformance TC

REINITIALIZING THE XML Conformance 
TC

      In order to ensure a sound OASIS 
technical committee process
      in accordance with 
the OASIS bylaws, the OASIS Board of
      Directors 
has created an Advisory Committee on Technical
      
Committees.  Consisting of the chairs of the TCs, the 
ACTC
      is empowered to create OASIS technical 
committees through
      formal appointment of 
members.

      However, the appointment of 
specific members with voting
      rights in each TC 
has the procedural implication that a
      majority 
of those members must be present in meetings 
and
      phone conferences for a TC to conduct 
formal business, and a
      majority of the 
appointed members is required for decisions
      
made by mail vote.  Thus, it is necessary to 
distinguish
      between the participants in each 
TC who can actually commit
      to attending 
meetings and phone conferences and members who
      
wish only to track the progress of the TC and participate 
in
      mail discussions.  For this procedural 
reason, only OASIS
      members who can actually 
attend meetings can be appointed
      voting 
members of a TC.

      Please note that this 
formal distinction does not change the
      current 
composition of this mail list.  The 
primary
      difference is that a subset of this 
list will now be able to
      pass formal 
resolutions on behalf of the group in 
accordance
      with the OASIS 
bylaws.

      In order to be considered for 
designation as a voting member
      of this TC, you 
need to read the following description of
      our 
estimated schedule and deliverables and then 
decide
      whether to respond with a request to be 
formally appointed.
      Please have your response, 
if any, back to me by April 17, 2000. 
      I 
will submit a list of nominees to the ACTC shortly 
thereafter.

         Mary 
Brady
         NIST, Standards and 
Conformance Testing
         
         
(301) 975-4094

      CALL FOR NOMINATIONS: OASIS 
XML Conformance TECHNICAL COMMITTEE

      The 
OASIS XML Conformance Technical Committee exists 
to
      provide a forum where XML vendors, content 
providers, and
      users can discuss issues that 
are pertinent to XML conformance.
      The 
objective of the Technical Committee is to develop 
tests
      to improve the quality of XML processors 
and determine if
      XML implementations and/or 
XML instances adhere to the
      XML 1.0 
Recommendation.

      Mary Brady, NIST,  is 
chair(s) of the TC.

      The proposed 
deliverables of the TC are as 
follows:

         * Address 
comments against existing test 
suite.
         * Review additional 
contributions for inclusion 
in
            test 
suite.
         * Release final 
version of test suite.

      Over the next year, 
the TC is expected to meet at

      * XML Europe 
'2000, Paris, June 15, 2000
      * OASIS Summer 
Workshop, August 2000
      * XML '2000, Boston, MA, 
December 2000
  
      The TC also 
intends to meet regularly by phone,
      NIST 
having agreed to provide phone conference 
services.

      Upon reinitialization, the TC 
will consist of a set of
      voting members and a 
set of non-voting observers.  The
      voting 
members will be those who have been appointed by 
the
      ACTC from among persons nominating 
themselves in response to
      this call.  
Note that voting members must be able to 
promise
      attendance at meetings in order to 
meet quorum requirements.
      Therefore, OASIS 
members wishing to track and comment upon
      the 
work of the TC in the mailing list but not to attend 
its
      meetings regularly should simply remain on 
this mailing list
      but not apply for voting 
membership.

      Members of this list willing 
to commit to voting participation in 
      
the OASIS XML Conformance Technical Committee 
are
      hereby requested to respond to this list 
no later than April 17,
     2000 with the following 
statement:

         I agree with 
the purpose of the XML Conformance TC as 
stated
         
above.

         I understand that 
OASIS technical committees 
regularly
         meet in person or 
by phone and that participation in 
the
         XML Conformance TC will 
require me to attend most of its 

         meetings.  Based on 
the estimated meeting schedule 

         
given above, I certify that I have the means and the interest 

         to 
attend such meetings and that I intend to do 
so.

         I understand that 
the TC cannot transact business in 
the
         absence of a quorum or 
take action by mail ballot 
without
         the active 
participation of its members and 
that
         therefore failure to 
attend meetings and vote in 
mail
         ballots will result in 
my removal from the committee.  
I
         promise to submit a letter 
of resignation to the chair 
or
         chairs of the committee 
if in the future I find 
myself
         unable to participate 
actively in its work.

         
[name]
         
[affiliation]
         [email 
address]
         [phone 
number]