Re: [VCARDDAV] vCard format and lack of interoperability

[Alessandro Rossini <[e-mail]>]

On 16 Nov 2012, at 20:33, Doug Royer <[e-mail]> wrote:

> Non standard properties are not for interoperability. They are so that a vendor can put their own extension into an object (vCard or iCal) and provide what they see as a value added reason to use their product. By allowing these non-standard properties and parameters into both iCal and vCard it provides a standard way to add vendor value added data that will not crash other vendors. The fact it does not crash them, is a great sign for vCard and iCal.

I understand that non-standard properties are not meant for interoperability, but I do not see why they should be included in the specification. In my opinion, open standards should first and foremost promote interoperability and prevent vendor lock-in.

By way of an analogy, browser vendors also introduced non-standard HTML tags and CSS properties to provide what they saw as a value-added reason to use their browser. These tags and properties did not crash other browsers, but they did prevent interoperability and promote vendor lock-in, which is exactly the opposite of what open standards should aim at.

Cheers,
--
Alessandro Rossini
http://alessandrorossini.org
http://twitter.com/alerossini