Q4043

DE FACTO STANDARD

Widely used.

Wide public acceptance.

Note, at times silence appears to be compliance, but in reality is merely lack of accurate reporting. For example, to gain a competitive advantage in an industry companies can innovate off of an apparent industrial standard without sharing with the rest of that industry.

Compare with de jure standard – by force of law. Can also be a standard decided through official authority and deliberative process.

Note that Q's post was in all caps. Without instruction to define, and so forth.

Standards emerge, one way or the other. Implementation, depends on acceptance and accurate representation of actual practices by which a de facto standard is recognizable.

Another approach: define standard. Categorize by the means by which a standard can become de facto.

And THEN reconcile with ALL CAPS formatting of Q's post.