On Thu, 10 Jul 2014, Paul Eggert wrote:
I doubt whether there's a genuine lack of concern about accuracy or correctness. On the contrary, I think we all want the data to be as accurate and correct as it can be. The only dispute here is how much stability trumps these other concerns.
Here's where I'd draw the line: If we obtain new information with higher assurance than the old information (or guesses), then we should update the database with the new information, for the sake of accuracy. If we believe that the old information has low assurance, but we do not have higher assurance information to replace it, then we should leave the old information in place, for the sake of stability. For example, if you believe that the date that a zone switched from LMT to a standard time with a "round number" offset from UT is just a guess with low assurance, then leave it alone, until better information becomes available; don't link the zone to another zone that was similar but had a different "guess" for the data of the switch from LMT to a standard time. If you learn better information, then adjust the database accordingly. --apb (Alan Barrett)