ISSUE-48: Should user-agents generate quotes for the q element

UA-q-quotes

Should user-agents generate quotes for the q element

State:
CLOSED
Product:
HTML 5 spec
Raised by:
Shawn Medero
Opened on:
2008-05-28
Description:
(This issue has been revised from a previous version. Please review the change-log for more information.)

The HTML 4.01 recommendation instructs authors to not put quotation marks at the beginning and end of the content of a Q element. It also suggests that user-agents should not insert quotations into the default BLOCKQUOTE element style.

The current HTML 5 editor's draft instructs authors to insert quotes manually for a Q element but doesn't make a clear user-agent recommendation regarding BLOCKQUOTE.

There is an interoperability issue in play as well. Internet Explorer 7 does not automatically enclose Q content with quotes where as Firefox 3 RC3, Safari 3.1, and Opera 9.5 do.

HTML5-SPEC-SECTIONS [the-q-element]
Related Actions Items:
No related actions
Related emails:
  1. minutes for 2009-09-03 telcon (from mike@w3.org on 2009-09-05)
  2. Re: ISSUE-48: UA-q-quotes - suggest closing on 2009-09-03 (from martin.kliehm@namics.com on 2009-09-03)
  3. Re: ISSUE-48: UA-q-quotes - suggest closing on 2009-09-03 (from xn--mlform-iua@xn--mlform-iua.no on 2009-09-03)
  4. Re: ISSUE-48: UA-q-quotes - suggest closing on 2009-09-03 (from mjs@apple.com on 2009-09-03)
  5. Re: ISSUE-48: UA-q-quotes - suggest closing on 2009-09-03 (from martin.kliehm@namics.com on 2009-09-03)
  6. Agenda for HTML WG telcon 2009-08-20 - Accessibility TF, HTML5 Test Suite, etc (from mjs@apple.com on 2009-09-01)
  7. {minutes} HTML WG telcon 2009-08-27 (from annevk@opera.com on 2009-08-27)
  8. Re: ISSUE-48: UA-q-quotes - suggest closing on 2009-09-03 (from martin.kliehm@namics.com on 2009-08-27)
  9. {agenda} HTML WG telcon 2009-08-27 *PLEASE-READ* (from rubys@intertwingly.net on 2009-08-26)
  10. ISSUE-48: UA-q-quotes - suggest closing on 2009-09-03 (from mjs@apple.com on 2009-08-20)
  11. Re: UA style sheet for <q>-- why required? (from rob@robburns.com on 2008-10-31)
  12. Re: <q> (from rob@robburns.com on 2008-10-29)
  13. Re: discretion in adding issues [was: respecification of document.write...] (from connolly@w3.org on 2008-06-13)
  14. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from olivier.gendrin@gmail.com on 2008-06-03)
  15. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from rob@robburns.com on 2008-06-03)
  16. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from olivier.gendrin@gmail.com on 2008-06-03)
  17. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from rob@robburns.com on 2008-06-02)
  18. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from rob@robburns.com on 2008-06-02)
  19. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from w3c@andrewsidwell.co.uk on 2008-06-02)
  20. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from rob@robburns.com on 2008-05-29)
  21. Re: ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from w3c@andrewsidwell.co.uk on 2008-05-29)
  22. ISSUE-48 (marks-content-markup-attribute): 'marks' content markup attribute for Q (quotation) and BLOCKQUOTE [HTML 5 spec] (from sysbot+tracker@w3.org on 2008-05-28)

Related notes:

(Special thanks to Robert Burns for doing much of the leg work on this topic)

# Specification References:

## HTML 5
Reference: http://dev.w3.org/html5/spec/Overview.html?#the-q

This is the only comment that addresses quotation marks:

> The on "Quotation punctuation (such as quotation marks), if any, must be placed inside the q element."

## HTML 4.01
Reference: http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/struct/text.html#edef-Q

A notes section provides this SHOULD recommendation:

> However, as some authors have used BLOCKQUOTE merely as a mechanism to indent text, in order to preserve the intention of the authors, user agents should not insert quotation marks in the default style

## CSS 2.1

"Specifying quotes with the 'quotes' property":
http://www.w3.org/TR/CSS21/generate.html#quotes-specify

"Inserting quotes with the 'content' property"
http://www.w3.org/TR/CSS21/generate.html#quotes-insert

----

# Proposals:

* A related wiki proposal from Robert Burns:
http://esw.w3.org/topic/HTML/AddedAttributeQuotationMarks

Shawn Medero, 13 Jun 2008, 18:38:04

Robin Lionheart's HTML 4 quotation testing:
http://www.robinlionheart.com/stds/html4/quote

Shawn Medero, 13 Jun 2008, 18:44:36

Really basic test cases used to test interop statement in description:
http://db79.com/html5/tests/q/

Shawn Medero, 13 Jun 2008, 19:27:38

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