Original Process Goal:
Support Waterfall Development

Added Process Goal:
Enable Agile Development

What does "Agile" mean?

• Specification development
  • in smaller chunks
  • with implementation and experimental deployment
  • and developing tests in conjunction with the Specification
• Most of this can be done without Process Changes

Why are we proposing Process Changes?

• Breakout Sessions at TPAC 2011 identified process concerns
• This list was refined by the Advisory Board and original commenters
• The Advisory Committee and Chairs helped prioritize and shrink the list

The Prioritzed Items that led to Process Changes

12 items were identified; 6 of these, retaining the numbers from the original 12, drove the Proposed changes

1. "Integrating implementations into the Process."

2. "Process document does not match modern development methodologies & tools."

4. "Desire for stable reference."

7. "Last Call (LC) may not be as useful as intended."

8. "Going to Last Call (LC) is misleading for Candidate Recommendation (CR) changes."

9. "Lack of test cases is a major contributor to schedule delay."

Using Agile Development on the Process Document

• AB had identified a number of Process Changes that could help
• It realized a number of the above issues were concerned with
  • Last Call,
  • Candidate Recommendation
  • and Proposed Recommendation
• All these are in Chapter 7, Recommendation Track Process
• Reduced focus to updating this chapter
• Other changes are possible in the future

What are the Process Changes 1?

• No changes to the W3C Patent Policy
• Splitting the two roles of "Last Call"
• Move the Patent Exclusion role to Candidate Recommendation
• Give Working Groups more flexibility on obtaining "Wide Review"
• Having fewer Maturity Levels with clearer entrance and exit criteria
• Overlap AC Review with Candidate Recommendation (and IPR Exclusion period)

What are the Process Changes 2?

• Clarify the REC Track Process
• non-normative "advice" has been removed
• normative requirements have been made explicit
• Definitions of “widely reviewed” and “implementation experience” have been clarified
• Directors response to AC Review MUST be Public prior to Decision

Current Identified Issues

• Rename Last Call Candidate Recommendation
• How is satisfying “widely reviewed” encouraged/ensured?
• What to do with the Status section?
• If LC and CR are combined, Director's Calls can be excessive overhead
• Change "Recommendation" to "Standard"

What is Next?

• REC Track Process Breakout
• "Last Call" is open until November 27
• Send Comments to public-w3process@w3.org
• The Process Discussion is done in public
• Issue Tracker
• IRC: #w3cprocess
• Minutes on public-w3process@w3.org
• Editor's Drafts
• Target is to have AC Review of new Process Document in January