ProcessTransition2015
This page answers questions related to the adoption of the 2015 Process. Please direct questions and comments to public-w3process@w3.org (archive).
General
What is the URI of the 2015 W3C Process
The URI is http://www.w3.org/2015/Process-20150901/
When does the 2015 W3C Process take effect?
1 September 2015.
What are the main changes from the 2014 Process?
The principal changes were the removal of "Activities" and "Coordination Groups" as formal concepts within the W3C Process. These changes removed an entire section (formerly Section 5) and caused editorial changes throughout.
The procedures for resigning from a Group and for handling change of affiliation of a TAG participant are clarified.
A diff document highlights all other changes in the document to front matter, appendix, etc.
Refer also to the ProcessTransition2014 wiki, which documents what happened to Last Call.
Who created the 2015 W3C Process?
Chapter 12 of the 2014 W3C Process describes the evolution of the Process: "The W3C Process Document undergoes similar consensus-building processes as technical reports, with the Advisory Board acting as the sponsoring Working Group."
The discussion about and development of the 2015 process was carried out in public, using the facilities of the Revising W3C Process Community Group.
Impact on Working Groups
When does the new Process take effect?
1 September 2015.
On this date the 2015 Process supersedes the 2014 Process.
Must all groups immediately publish under the 2015 Process?
Any group who was publishing under the 2014 Process should start publishing under the 2015 Process as of 1 September 2015.
Groups who are continuing to publish under the 2005 Process per the 19 March 2014 message to the Membership, should move any Recommendation Track document that has not reached Recommendation to the 2015 Process within the remainder of the 2-year phase-in period for Process 2014. For more details, see the 2014 Process transition procedure for groups.
When can groups start to publish specifications under the new Process?
1 September 2015.
Do Working Groups still publish "heartbeat" drafts under the 2015 W3C Process?
Yes. The 2015 W3C Process states "A Working Group should publish a Working Draft to the W3C Technical Reports page when there have been significant changes to the document that would benefit from review beyond the Working Group. If 6 months elapse without significant changes to a specification a Working Group should publish a revised Working Draft, whose status section should indicate reasons for the lack of change." (Section 6.3.2)
This statement has not changed from the 2014 Process. The 2014 Process restated this in an additional section. That additional section (formerly 6.2.7) was viewed as redundant and is dropped from the 2015 Process.
How do publications change under the 2015 Process?
The transition period from the 2005 Process is still in effect; however, all references to the 2014 Process in that transition now refer to the 2015 Process.
Specifically, each specification published after August 2014 identifies the governing process. The publication requirement and corresponding checker test that looks for the information in technical reports published after August 2014 are updated to reject the 2014 reference and allow only the 2005 or 2015 references.
If you find resources that need updating, please write to site-comments@w3.org.
Are the existing Coordination Groups now closed?
Please refer to specific separate announcements concerning the remaining Coordination Groups.
What other resources are affected by the adoption of the 2015 Process?
Impact on People Who Review or Implement Specifications
The impact of the adoption of the 2014 Process applies equally to the 2015 Process.
Impact on W3C Patent Policy Operations
The impact of the adoption of the 2014 Process applies equally to the 2015 Process.