[uf-discuss] [Zen of Microformats] Two Fundamental Principles of Information Design

[Ian Davis]

On 09/03/2007 09:06, Kevin Marks wrote:
> 
> On Mar 8, 2007, at 11:08 AM, Danny Ayers wrote:
> 
>> For example, <div class="family-name">Novak<div> etc. might work fine,
>> but imagine you later discover an established practice amongst
>> biologists: <div class="family-name">Microhylidae</div>. Turns out
>> their existing systems consider your Costellos, Novaks and Smiths as a
>> classification term, alongside Narrow-mouthed frogs.
> 
> As their systems are astronomically unlikely to have wrapped their taxa 
> in a vcard class, there is no clash.

So class="vcard" namespaces the terms because it encloses it. Sort of 
like data islands.

> 
> Can you stop just making stuff up and pretending this is a problem please?
> 
I don't think that's the problem, or you're missing the point in your 
eagerness to dismiss this issue. The consequences of what you're saying 
is that mf.org has laid claim to the wrapper class names so no-one can 
ever use them in their markup to mean anything else, across the whole 
web for all time.


>> It's taking the responsibility locally by saying:
>>
>> 'we're ok to create a convention using class="family-name" because we
>> have mechanisms in place that mean other people aren't prevented from
>> using it for their own purposes'
> 
> Yes, wrapping it in a container class deliberately chosen to be rare.

Why not use something that is known to be unique instead of guessing?

Ian