-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Lea de Groot Sent: Sunday, September 05, 2004 2:12 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [WSG] Interview markup?
On Sun, 05 Sep 2004 14:53:46 +1000, Michael Nelson wrote: > I mean, a definition list is really for definitions No, I don't agree. The W3C docs site two example uses: - a standard term and definition usage, and - marking up dialogues. see http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/struct/lists.html#h-10.3 Clearly, the second of these is *not* a definition, and is somewhat close to an interview. I think its perfect for an interview type layout Lea ****************************************************** A dialogue is not a Q&A session. Dialogues involve an interactive, protracted process in which the speakers react to and interact with each other. This is the case whether it is a conversation between people or a contrived situation as in a script or book. In either case the dt would, as the specs say, name the speaker, and the dd would contain her words. The next dt would be the next speaker and the accompanying dd his words. The structure is speaker | speaker's words. The speaker and the speakers words are structurally linked together. This is not the model of a Q&A. A Q&A is more like a press conference. The questions are not necessarily related. One question could deal with the color of socks and the next with the national debt. In a dialogue identifying who is speaking is important -- it provides a means for following an individuals line of reasoning throughout what can be a protracted interchange. Whereas in a Q&A the identity of the questioner is unimportant, it is the answer which matters. Yet there is some sense and structure to a Q&A. The person being interviewed has information which the interviewer(s) is(are) trying to elicit. There is an overall point even if the exchange itself is meandering and disjointed. There is only one linguistic element which has the flexibility to accommodate such a rambling exchange and that is the paragraph. A paragraph is both complete in and of itself and when grouped with other paragraphs in some sectioning scheme, requires at least a tenuous connection between paragraphs. That's what a Q&A is: a grouped series of responses focused on the of responses of the interviewee regardless of many interviewers participate or how disjointed the questions. It's the voice of the interviewee that matters making a dialogue format inappropriate. Only paragraphing can create a cohesive whole from potentially disjointed parts. drew ****************************************************** The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/ Proud presenters of Web Essentials 04 http://we04.com/ Web standards, accessibility, inspiration, knowledge To be held in Sydney, September 30 and October 1, 2004 See http://webstandardsgroup.org/mail/guidelines.cfm for some hints on posting to the list & getting help ******************************************************
