| ▲ | 0cf8612b2e1e 19 hours ago | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
I know it is in jest, but I really hate that so many documents include “shall”. The interpretation of which has had official legal rulings going both ways.You MUST use less ambiguous language and default to “MUST” or “SHOULD” | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ▲ | msylvest 10 hours ago | parent | next [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Around 1990 I attended ISO/JTC1 meetings generating standards for data communication. I still recall my surprise over the heated arguments over these words between the UK and the US delegations. (I'm from Denmark). In particular 'shall' and 'should' meant different things in English and American languages. ISO's first standard, ISO 1, states that ISO Standards shall be written in English so we had to do that, US delegation too. Similarly Scott Bradner stated in RFC 2219 how American conventions should be followed for future IETF STDs. So I'm confident that the word 'shall' has a strong meaning in English; whether it has too in American legalese I cannot tell. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| ▲ | layer8 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On (possibly weak) counterpoint that I can offer is that in some languages, “must not” is a false friend, easily misinterpreted as “is not required to” (“it is not the case that they must”). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ▲ | layman51 19 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Right. I think when these appear in some documentation related to computing, they should also mention whether it is using these words in compliance with RFC 2119 or RFC 6919. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ▲ | wildzzz 18 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Must is a strict requirement, no flexibility. Shall is a recommendation or a duty, you should do it. You must put gas in the car to drive it. You shall get an oil change every 6000 miles. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| ▲ | Muhammad523 19 hours ago | parent | prev [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Many legal documents use "may" to say you must. That's why i hate legalese... | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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