EML next steps with JTC1 (interim update)

[James Bryce Clark <jamie.clark@oasis-open.org>]

This is an interim report on our OASIS submission arrangements with 
ISO/IEC JTC1, which as you know the Elections TC hopes to use later 
this year.

We talked earlier about JTC1's wide-ranging debates over how 
external submissions like the "PAS" submissions from OASIS are 
handled.  We discussed this at your meeting, when you considered the 
state of EML v5, and the TC decided to hold any request for JTC1 
submission until your next major version, EML v6, expected later 
this calendar year.

Since then, the JTC1 leadership has asked us to visit with the 
leaders of one relevant subcommittee, SC34, which we have done in a 
series of meetings, and worked out some possible ground rules for 
future handling of versions, errata, and the like,.  These 
recommendations are being provided both to JTC1 (who  will act to 
formally accept them in June or thereabouts).  Shortly I expect to 
hear back from the just-completed SC34 meetings in Prague, where 
they were planning to endorse those principles in writing.

At the same time we are working on the same issues with the OASIS 
Board of Directors, who created a committee (on which I sit) to 
review and revise our own rules for these submissions.  Their work 
should be done within a month, and I will report it to you.   It is 
my hope that they will adopt the same basic  principles that JTC1 
plans to recommend.  So far the two groups seem to be converging 
nicely on common solutions. The Board is considering what other 
rules and requirements it wishes to apply, because the Liaison 
Policy (covering external submissions) has not been reviewed for 
several years;  as I mentioned to you when we spoke, we should know 
shortly whether any other rules or plans will come from that review.

I think we're still on the course predicted when we spoke earlier 
this year:  by the time your committee has v6 ready to go, we should 
have a commonly-understood and updated set of submission and 
cooperation rules to use as well.

Thanks for all of the work you are putting into EML, and we'll look 
forward to working with you to advance it once the current version 
is ready.

Kind regards  Jamie

~ James Bryce Clark
~ Director of Standards Development, OASIS
~ http://www.oasis-open.org/who/staff.php#clark