Technical Reports Development Process
Q: How are technical reports
created?
A: Technical reports are created by the Unicode Consortium Technical
Committees (UTC and
LTC)
in a open, consensus-oriented process. The Unicode Editorial Committee
is charged with the preparation of the text for publication and is
authorized to make editorial changes or corrections.
Q: What kinds of technical reports
exist?
A: There are three kinds of reports: Unicode Technical Reports
(UTR), containing informative material, Unicode Standard Annexes
(UAX) which form an
integral part of the Unicode Standard and Unicode Technical Standards
(UTS), which are independent specifications. They are described in
more detail in
http://www.unicode.org/reports/about-reports.html.
Q: What are the draft stages of a technical
report?
A: As technical reports are developed, preliminary versions
are posted for public review. A Draft Unicode Technical Report (DUTR) has
been approved by the Unicode Technical Committee for public review.
A Proposed Draft Unicode Technical Report (PDUTR) is in
the earliest stages of public review. Even earlier versions simply
exist as working documents in the UTC. A draft of a revision of an
existing technical report is identified as a Proposed
Update.
Q: How do I find out about changes to technical
reports?
A. Significant updates to technical reports are
often submitted as Public Review Issues.
As part of the public review process, input from a wide variety of users
and implementers is received. Public review issues are announced on
mailing lists and on the home page, when issued. The
Unicode Technical Reports
index page also lists any drafts or proposed updates that are being considered by the UTC.
Q: What is the status of a given type of
report?
A: Each document contains a status section, giving status
information. A UTR normally advances from proposed draft to
draft to approved. It can sometimes then advance to Unicode
Technical Standard or Unicode Standard Annex.
Q: How do I access the latest version of a
technical report?
A: The latest version is always accessed via the list on
the Unicode Technical Reports
page or by setting a bookmark to http://www.unicode.org/reports/trnn, where nn is the specific number
of the report. Each document also contains a link to itself, using its
explicit version number. This link can be used when a reference to that
particular version of the report is desired.
Q: How do I correctly reference a technical
report?
A: See the section on Citations and References in
Versions of the
Unicode Standard.
Q: What is the relation of a given version
of a technical report to a version of the Unicode Standard?
A: Unicode Standard Annexes (UAX) are an integral part of a particular
version of the Unicode Standard. That version number is part of the
header in the UAX. The other technical reports are not part of the Unicode
Standard and have independent version numbers. Note that UTS #10 is
synchronized with particular versions of the Unicode Standard and
therefore uses the synchronized version numbers.
Q: What kind of stability can I expect for
each type of document?
A: For Proposed Draft, Draft and
Proposed Update: These documents reflect work in progress,
but their publication implies no commitment by the Consortium or its
member companies. They should never be referred to as anything other
than work in progress. Implementers creating implementations that
conform to a draft document do so at their own risk.
For approved Reports, Standards and
Annexes: Once a document is approved it will be given a
unique version number and stable public location. Implementers can rely
on an approved documents, and they may be externally referenced.
Q: How are technical reports
updated?
A: After a technical report has been approved, it may
undergo minor editorial revision, mostly to correct any errata or fix
problems with the HTML source. From time to time, adding to or revising
the technical content of a technical report may become desirable.
A draft of the revised report is created and brought before the UTC for
approval as a Proposed Update. If the proposed changes
are significant, the UTC may call for a formal public review of the
proposed update and eventually approve a revised technical report. Each
version of a technical report will be numbered sequentially, and all
changes will result in a new version number.
Q: Will old versions be archived?
A: All public and approved versions of technical
reports will remain online. Each version of a technical report
carries a unique version number and contains a link to the preceding
approved version of the document.
All versions are stable: once posted, the contents of the
file for, e.g., UTR #21 version 3 will not be changed, and always
found at the "versioned link":
http://www.unicode.org/reports/tr21/tr21-3.
The latest version of the same UTR will always be found at
the "unversioned" link. For example,
http://www.unicode.org/reports/tr21/
Where technical reports have been superseded, for example
by incorporating the material into the published versions of the Unicode
Standard, they are sometimes archived offline.
Q: What is required for approval?
A: Each point of approval requires a majority vote in the
UTC. Where previous technical decisions are overturned, a supermajority
is required. In most cases UTC decisions are by consensus, with no
dissenting votes.
Q: What are the stages for creating a
technical report?
A: The "Initial Publication Cycle" figure below gives a somewhat simplified picture of the principal stages in developing a Unicode Technical Report. While many UAXs and UTSs first existed as a UTR, this is becoming less common. Also, public review may occur already at the Proposed Draft stage. Finally, UAXs or UTRs may be absorbed into the text of the Unicode Standard, and
are thereby permanently superseded.
Q: What are the stages for updating a
technical report?
A: These stages are shown in the "Maintenance Cycle" figure
below.
Q&A contributed by
[AF]; updated by
[JDA]
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