# The role of the chairs

Alan Emtage (bajan@bunyip.com)
Tue, 19 Oct 1993 22:10:32 -0400

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    Message-Id: <9310200210.AA13355@mocha.bunyip.com>

    From: bajan@bunyip.com (Alan Emtage)

    Date: Tue, 19 Oct 1993 22:10:32 -0400

    To: uri@bunyip.com

    Subject: The role of the chairs

Hello all,
I guess that this is as good a time as any to reiterate the role
of the WG Chair in the IETF process. Several people recently have
requested that Jim Fullton and I as co-chairs of this group try to bring
closure to some of the debates now in flagrante delicto on the list.

While this action is appropriate in some circumstances and in fact has
been used in this group to focus discussion, it is the belief of both
myself and Jim (and obviously others) that the output of this group will
have major ramifications to the entire Internet information
infrastructure in the near and long term future. As such we are inclined
to give much more lattitude in this particular case than may be expected
under other circumstances. The role of the Chair at the IETF is one of
facilitator and coordinator not ruler :-)

As Eric pointed out earlier concensus has obviously not been reached in
some areas and thus the only course of action here is to let the ideas
being expressed continue to do battle. Some have expressed frustration
that issues are being raised which were thought to have been resolved
some time ago. I would argue that some of these are being revisited due
to a more complete understanding of the problems.

There are 2 URI WG meetings scheduled in Houston (the first of which will
be multicast) and it expected that we can come to some agreement on a
number of the problems before us. While I don't suggest that we should
send ahead documents which are obviously flawed, we would be fooling
ourselves if we think that we can come up with real long-term solutions
to some of the thornier problems. We do have tools, (such as experimental
standard RFCs) at our disposal which would allow us to test ideas without
having to engrave anything in stone. I will be posting the draft agenda
in the next day or so and as always, additions/comments are welcomed.

I look forward to 2 very "energetic" meetings :-)

    --
    -Alan

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Alan Emtage,				"The Left in Canada is more gauche
    Bunyip Information Systems,		 than sinister"
    Montreal, CANADA			 -The Economist

    bajan@bunyip.com
    Voice: +1 (514) 875-8611		Fax: +1 (514) 875-8134

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