[webkit-reviews] review requested: [Bug 72722] Recognize the semicolon as a separator for meta viewport : [Attachment 116617] Patch

[bugzilla-daemon at webkit.org]

Peter Beverloo <peter at chromium.org> has asked  for review:
Bug 72722: Recognize the semicolon as a separator for meta viewport
https://bugs.webkit.org/show_bug.cgi?id=72722

Attachment 116617: Patch
https://bugs.webkit.org/attachment.cgi?id=116617&action=review

------- Additional Comments from Peter Beverloo <peter at chromium.org>
> > CNN
> "initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;
> 
> > Flickr
> "width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0; maximum-scale=1.0; user-scalable=0;"
> 
> > Reddit
> "width=800, initial-scale=1"
> 
> None of these sites uses semicolon as separator. CNN and Flickr use "; ",
which always worked in iOS, and Reddit uses comma.

I do not completely with your assertion. While, on a technical level, they
indeed do not use the semicolon as the separator, I'm sure that the authors
believe they do. Especially in the case of "width=device-width;" this is the
case, because "device-width;" is invalid and thus the entire key-value pair
gets disregarded. The intended behavior is only observed due to the other added
properties.

> The discussion mentions the principle of "Be liberal in what you accept, and
conservative in what you send." In almost all cases, it's the wrong principle
for web browser engines in this age. We should stick to interoperable specs,
not surprise authors and security researchers with badly defined behaviors.
> 
> I think that we can still consider paving the cowpath. I suggest that the
patch is reviewed by Dave Kilzer or Joe Pecoraro (CC'ed on the	bug). One way
or another, please correct the ChangeLog.

Ok. I amended the description and labelled current usage as an "assumed
separator", while also adding more background. In the addendum of "the behavior
which authors expect" I specifically refer to my earlier statement that authors
think they are separators, and disfunctionality of the keywords is often
compensated for by additional properties.