Subject: Author's details in RFCs

From: Ian Cooper <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 26 Mar 2002 09:32:23 -0800

Since the RFC Editor has a draft out that will update the instructions to 
RFC authors (draft-rfc-editor-rfc2223bis-00.txt) this seems a reasonable 
time to bring up a query.

Section 10 of RFC2223 reads:

10.  Author's Address Section

   Each RFC must have at the very end a section giving the author's
   address, including the name and postal address, the telephone number,
   (optional: a FAX number) and the Internet email address.

Section 4.11 of the draft reads:

   4.11  Author's Address Section

      Each RFC must have at the end a section giving the author's
      address, including the name and postal address, the telephone
      number, (optional: a FAX number) and the Internet email address.

Er, OK, so they're identical :)

But why must the author(s)/editor supply addresses and telephone numbers? 
And what should an independent author/editor with no affiliation provide? 
(Please don't tell me they should use their residential details - that's 
unacceptable.)

I understand that in rare cases the RFC Editor will allow publications with 
only a persistent email address, but in that case I'm curious as to why we 
don't just go that route and do away with physically bound points of 
contact altogether.  After all, they don't appear to serve any useful 
purpose (other than to provide headhunters a number to call).

Answers? Comments? Flames?

---

From: Pekka Savola <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 2002 13:49:38 +0200 (EET)

> purpose (other than to provide headhunters a number to call).

I agree completely.  I've zero intention to provide anything other than:

 - name
 - affiliation
 - city, country
 - email address

in any draft I'll write; I won't put in street address, phone number or
anything because I don't want to be contacted that way based on a
draft/RFC: email address will work, and if not, it will be more or less
trivial to find another address that does work.  And if a new email 
address couldn't be found, one probably don't want to be contacted about 
the issue anyway.

-- 
Pekka Savola                 "Tell me of difficulties surmounted,
Netcore Oy                   not those you stumble over and fall"
Systems. Networks. Security.  -- Robert Jordan: A Crown of Swords