Subject: IETF speed -- was Re: Running Code

From: Alfred Hönes <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 4 Mar 2009 15:39:26 +0100 (MEZ)

In message
  http://www.IETF.ORG/mail-archive/web/ietf/current/msg55986.html,
Hannes Tschofenig wrote:

> I would like to provide one recent example. In the EMU working group we
> worked on a protocol, called EAP-GPSK http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc5433.txt.
> The work was done in a design team, it took a very long time (the first
> design team draft dates back to May 2006).

Hannes,

you are saying "very long time" -- but according to
my limited experience, the IETF timeline you mention
in fact seems to be unusually _fast_ !

I have recently seen new, rather short RFCs that took
more than 5 years from first WG discussion to RFC.
Sadly, that apparently are _not_ extreme outliers.
(And according to filed records, they have not been subject to
substantial normative MISSREF stalls.)

I do not want to blame anybody, but in the TSV area I am aware
of documents in at least two different WGs that describe common
(and recommended) _existing_ implementation practice and have
not even been submitted to the IESG after more than 4 years of
consideration.

Reportedly, other WGs in other areas show similar 'performance'
occasionally (or worse).  Sigh!

Contrary to that, I am aware of a "young" WG 'ab initio' committed
to a policy rule that "adopted work items should be forwarded to
the IESG within roughly one year -- or abandoned".  Very laudable!

Kind regards,
  Alfred.

-- 

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From: Lars Eggert <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 5 Mar 2009 09:40:59 +0100

Hi,

> not even been submitted to the IESG after more than 4 years of

I'd be interested to learn which IDs you refer to.

Thanks,
Lars