The TAG; W3C's Technical Architecture Group

In the beginning, the Web was simple and so were the architectural principles upon which development of the Web was based.  As the Web and the family of standards that support it have grown in complexity, underlying principles have become cloudy.  In part this is because while some of the architectural principles are well known, others are less well known.  Then there is the issue of acceptance of principles by the Web community.

As W3C has grown, there have been more frequent requests (from W3C Members and other parties) for documentation of architectural principles that cross multiple technologies. People ask, "How do W3C technologies fit together? What basics must people know before they start developing a new technology?"  In addition debate has arisen over principles.  Some discussions and debates within W3C have revealed the need for documented architectural principles as well as a process for resolving disagreements about architecture.

In response to this need, W3C has launched its new Technical Architecture Group, known as "the TAG".  The charter for the TAG was released by W3C on July 19.  The TAG was established to document cross-technology Web architecture principles and resolve architectural issues. The TAG is chaired by the W3C Director (currently Tim Berners-Lee) and consists of five elected and three appointed participants. Like other W3C Working Groups, the TAG will use the Recommendation track to build consensus around its documents. The TAG will conduct most of its work on a public mailing list. The nomination period will begin in August. Visit the TAG home page to learn more.

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