Editing Minutes

This page provides step by step instructions on how to edit the WG minutes generated by RRSAgent.

The right way

Updating the minutes actually requires editing the IRC text log and re-generating the HTML minutes from it. This involves the following steps (substitute the date elements in the URL appropriately):

1. Download the text version of the IRC log:

curl http://www.w3.org/2014/11/12-shapes-irc.txt -o irc.txt

2. Edit the IRC log text file (irc.txt) using your favorite text editor

3. Regenerate the minutes (HTML file):

scribe.perl irc.txt > minutes.html 
(or) perl scribe.perl irc.txt > minutes.html

4. Upload the minutes:

curl --user myuserid --upload-file minutes.html https://edit.w3.org/2014/11/12-shapes-minutes.html

Curl will prompt you for your password.

5. Upload the IRC log text file for safe keeping and possible future edits:

curl --user myuserid --upload-file irc.txt https://edit.w3.org/2014/11/12-shapes-irc.txt

Note that uploading must be done on the https://edit.w3.org server. Curl will prompt you for your password.

If you get tired of being prompted for your password you can either put it on the command line as --user myuserid:mypassword or create a netrc file with the line:

machine edit.w3.org login myuserid password mypassword

See curl's manual for more info.

Things to look for

Make sure the following has been done, and add any missing info as necessary:

• record scribe's name
• record chair's name
• record agenda
• record regrets
• record attendees (typically this needs some editing as Zakim can easily get it wrong)
• make sure resolutions are properly recorded as such

Below are corresponding examples for IRC log. Note that you don't need to add a timestamp when adding those.

• set the scribe:

<SteveS> scribe: SteveS

• set the chair:

<SteveS> chair: Arnaud

• set the agenda:

<SteveS> agenda: http://www.w3.org/2014/data-shapes/wiki/Meetings:Telecon2014.11.12

• set regrets:

<SteveS> regrets: pfps, Nick

• set attendees (can be most easily done based on Zakim's take list displayed at the end of the meeting)

<SteveS> present: kcoyle, Arnaud, hknublau, SteveS, Irene, ericP, solbrig, arthur

• make sure resolutions are properly recorded as such:

<SteveS> RESOLVED: xxx

Relevant resources

• curl
• scribe.perl documentation
• Publishing with edit.w3.org

The wrong way

Although you could edit the the HTML minutes directly and it may seem more straightforward it may actually end up requiring more work.

For instance, changing or adding an agenda topic requires changing or adding one line in the IRC log while it requires changing two lines in the HTML file: one in the body of the minutes and one in the table of contents at the top. Some situations are even worse: For example, if the scribe wasn't set. All it takes to fix it is to add one line in the IRC log, while it will impact about every line in the body to differentiate what was typed in by the scribe from what other people typed in during the meeting.

In addition, there is no way to prevent someone from then editing the IRC log and overriding the changes made directly to the HTML minutes.

For these reasons, editing the log is the recommended way and editing the HTML minutes is to be avoided.