w3c / w3c/webdriver

Rename "error" to better support external references

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Description

The spec includes a definition for the term "error." This is appropriate in the context of the document, but it is too generic for use in other specifications--notably, those that define WebDriver extension commands.

This issue came up in a proposal to define an extension command in the Permissions specification. There, @jyasskin commented:

I'm uncomfortable with WebDriver reserving the term "error" globally.

To be clear: this issue does not interfere with the use case of extension commands. External specifications may reference this document's "error" however they wish. (This is what @jyasskin suggests for the Permissions specification.)

However, that seems like it may become a common enough concern to warrant a change here. As @ato suggested:

Would renaming WebDriver’s error definition to, say, WebDriver error or
something better make WebDriver a better citizen for other specifications to
hook into?

This issue is intended to facilitate discussion about that change. Would the editors be open to a patch which re-named "error" to "WebDriver error"?

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start with the WebDriver specification's definition of “error” and review the linked Permissions discussion for the external-reference concern. Confirm with the editors whether a terminology change is wanted and which replacement is accepted; done means the agreed term is applied consistently throughout the specification and its references.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Domain
documentation
Issue type
Documentation
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
25/100

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