[iaufwg] call for volunteers

[William Pence]

Dear IAU FITS Working Group Members,

This is a call for 4 - 6 volunteers to serve on a small technical panel 
to draft updates and clarifications to the wording of the FITS Standard 
document.  The last major revision to the Standard was in 1999 so it is 
overdue for another update.  The purpose of this panel is to

1) identify sections of the FITS Standard that need updating or 
clarifying, and

2) draft the proposed revisions to the text of the Standard.

The preliminary set of 16 issues given at 
http://fits.gsfc.nasa.gov/std_clarifications.html will serve as a 
starting point, but I expect that we will also solicit other
suggestions from the FITS User community on the FITSBITS email list. 
The end result of the technical panel's work will be a written
document that shows in detail all the proposed changes to the wording of
the FITS Standard document.

These proposed changes will go through a formal review and approval 
process, i.e., there will be a public discussion period on FITSBITS, 
followed by regional FITS committee votes, followed by a vote by the 
IAUFWG before the changes would take effect.

I don't really know how long this will take, but my hope is that the 
technical panel can complete its work in ~6 month.  All the discussions 
will be done via email and maybe an occasional conference call;  no 
travel is required.  Most of the needed changes that have been 
identified so far are not very complicated or controversial, so serving 
on this panel should not be very difficult or time consuming.  The main 
requirements are a 'detail-oriented' aptitude and the ability to write 
clear and concise English in the same style as in the Standard.

Please let me know if you would be willing to serve on this important 
panel.

thanks,
Bill
-- 
____________________________________________________________________
Dr. William Pence                       pence at milkyway.gsfc.nasa.gov
NASA/GSFC Code 662       HEASARC        +1-301-286-4599 (voice)
Greenbelt MD 20771                      +1-301-286-1684 (fax)