On Thu, 17 Oct 1996, Stu Weibel wrote:
> PROPOSITION:
>
> Current names for Dublin Core elements are alpha strings that
> perpetuate their anglo-centric (and text-centric) origin. While
> these names or something very much like them may continue to be the
> names by which the elements are discussed popularly, a means of
> element name indirection should be put in place soon to allow
> non-english language names as well as names that might be tailored
> better to specialized domains.
>
> PRO: Internationalization is one of the largest problems to be solved
> on the net. Providing an indirection mechanism for element names
> will address one small but important part of this problem.
>
> Element names must either be made more generic to accommodate
> non-textual content, or a mechanism for alternate, domain-centered
> names must be developed.
>
While this is a noble idea, I think that we will loose all meaning if we
take this route and try to go with numbers or some such; the point about
HTML was well made.
Merrilee Proffitt
The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
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