[rfc-i] draft-flanagan-rfc-framework-02 composition tools

[nico at cryptonector.com (Nico Williams)]

On Sat, Nov 08, 2014 at 02:26:38AM -0500, George, Wes wrote:
> Here's my initial quick and dirty attempt to flesh out the explicit and
> implied requirements:
> 
> - Easy to use for someone familiar with a basic word-processor (yes, this
> is subjective and needs to be better defined)

It is subjective.  Some/many will reject this, I think.

Does NroffEdit meet this would-be requirement?  I think so.  Joe Touch
probably doesn't.

Does LyX?  I think so, even though it's not a word-processor in the Word
sense.  Again, Joe Touch probably doesn't.

> - Directly outputs canonical I-D (xml2rfc) format. (I say this because IMO
> solutions that require multiple tools/steps to make translations before we
> get to xml are a step away from "easy")

The pandoc/markdown/LyX tools do this.

> - Actively supported (either via code sprints and IETF folks or via an
> IETF-paid support contract to a third party)

I think they're all "actively" supported for some value of "actively".
If someone files an issue against lyx2rfc I'll get around to fixing it,
I'm just not sure when (there's no SLA).

> - WYSIWYG editing mode including support for tables, references, code
> blocks, sections, and other bits of layout integral to an I-D without
> requiring direct XML editing - though true WYSIWYG would require defining
> the derivative output format (HTML, plaintext, etc)

I think only LyX gets close here.  And it's pretty darned close -- as
close as I think you can get given what you say about WYSIWYG involving
the output formats.  As long as we have N>1 output formats WYSIWYM is
the only realistic way to edit I-Ds, at least for N-1 formats.

> - Multi-platform (at least common versions of Windows, OSX, Linux/Unix)

Most of the composition tools get this.

> - Unicode support

Ditto.

> - Well-documented for both beginner and advanced users

I think this is also true of most (e.g., there's not that much to
Markdown).

> Optional:
> - Android/iOS support

This one is gonna be a bit more difficult.  There's no LyX port to those
yet.  There are LaTeX editors for iOS, and I suspect Android, and I
suspect a port of LyX would be feasible.  (There used to be a TeX macro
pacakage for I-D editing; it's old and missing various features, but
maybe it could be revived?)

Obviously the Markdown approach works on Android and iOS...

> - Open Source

All of the composition tools listed on tools.ietf.org are open source,
except for Word (though Joe's templates are open, right?).

Mind you, I don't think open source makes for a good requirement, but
low cost does, as does multi-platform support.

> - In-tool SVG creation/editing

Hmmm.  This would be very nice.  I'm not sure it's realistic yet.

(Ditto math.  But xml2rfc has no math support.  LyX has a beautiful math
editor, but it lacks an SVG editor, though it supports inclusion of
SVG.)

> - Web-based client instead of requiring local installation

The whole thing web-based?  That eliminates all of the current tools
except the Markdown one and similar (many websites already support
markdown natively, e.g., github).

> - Free to use for IETF participants (even if this takes the form of a
> limited-function version that ONLY allows authoring XML docs in IETF's
> template, rather than getting a full-featured XML editor for free), or
> possibly the lite version doesn't include the full suite of features that
> the RSE would need for document layout and final production

Yes, free or so inexpensive as to be free.

> - Support for collaborative editing (this probably covers two big things
> that are both separately optional - simple tracking changes plus the
> ability to tie into something like git as a document repository)

LyX can do this in a pass the token manner, replete with change
tracking.  It's not very satisfactory, IMO.  If we add bi-directional
lyx<->xml conversion support it would lend itself better to merging at
the XML level (for whatever that's worth).

> - Offline editing mode

If you need off-line and we-based that currently only leaves Markdown or
similar.

> - Outputs files or shows WYSIWYG previews of multiple derivative formats
> (using XML2RFC or via other means)

lyx2rfc gets this now.

> The break between required and optional is certainly debatable, and I'm

Yes.

> not necessarily suggesting that we do it right now on this thread, I just
> wanted to provide something to get this moving toward a productive
> discussion, and I think having this list of requirements might help to
> frame the discussion Heather plans to have with IESG and/or the discussion
> Joe H might have with RSOC.

Agreed.

Nico
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