URL syntax draft: URL and URL reference

["Martin J. Duerst" <[e-mail]>]

Hello everybody,

This is the first of a few messages I will send regarding the
URL syntax draft. I decided to split up my comments into
separate messages, so that the separate topics can be dealt
with in separate threads.

The first issue I would like to address is the problem
of the distinction between URL and URL Reference. The
later includes both absolute and relative URLs and includes
the #fragment, while the former does not.

I have see two problems here:

(1) General terminology, and other documents, in my oppinion seem
to include the #fragment part in the term URL (it's not difficult
to think of it as a location, inside the document). Using the terms
the way they are in the syntax draft looks to me like creating
legaleese that may create problems and will need explanations.
A change of "URL Reference"  ==> "URL" and "URL" ==> something
else should be considered if this issue hasn't been discussed
extensively already.

(2) URL first appear in 2.3.2, but are only explained in 3.
This is confusing. I propose that a sentence or an example
be added to 1. or 1.2 to get the reader used to the terminology
right ahead.

Regards,	Martin.


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Dr.sc.  Martin J. Du"rst			    ' , . p y f g c R l / =
Institut fu"r Informatik			     a o e U i D h T n S -
der Universita"t Zu"rich			      ; q j k x b m w v z
Winterthurerstrasse  190			     (the Dvorak keyboard)
CH-8057   Zu"rich-Irchel   Tel: [phone]
 S w i t z e r l a n d	   Fax: [phone]   Email: [e-mail]
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