Ian Jacobs
Director, Payments at W3C
Greater Chicago Area United States
Summary
🤩
Rockstar🎓
Top SchoolIan Jacobs is a veteran technology and standards leader with 28 years at W3C, currently serving as Director, Payments and previously leading Web Payments and communications efforts. He blends deep editorial and engineering chops—ranging from standards editing to technical writing—with practical implementation experience evidenced by contributions to high-profile specs like the CSS Working Group drafts and the Payment Request API. Based in the Greater Chicago Area, he specializes in payments interoperability, security, and internationalization, translating complex protocol requirements into usable web standards. Known for clarifying specification language and improving examples and structure, he brings a rare mix of precision, long-term product stewardship, and hands-on open-source involvement.
28 years of coding experience
BS Electrical and Electronics Engineering, BS Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Yale CollegeMasters Computer Software Engineering, Masters Computer Software Engineering at CERICS
French, Italian
Github Skills (8)
payment-request-api10
documentation10
web-development9
internationalization5
accessibility4
ecommerce3
w3c3
payment3
Programming languages (8)
Github contributions (5)
w3c/payment-request
Feb 2016 - Nov 2022
Payment Request API
Role in this project:
Technical Writer
Technical WriterContributions:33 reviews, 60 commits, 58 PRs in 6 years 9 months
Contributions summary:Ian's commits primarily focus on updating the documentation for the Payment Request API. The contributions involve revising the specification, clarifying definitions, and addressing editorial issues. They updated the introduction, examples, and various sections on security and privacy considerations. The user also added a new section on Payment Handler Matching and made changes to internationalization support.
paymentsapistandardizationapi-requestpayment-gateway
w3c/csswg-drafts
Jul 1997 - Nov 2000
CSS Working Group Editor Drafts
Role in this project:Back-end Developer
Back-end DeveloperContributions:1168 commits, 1 branch in 3 years 4 months
Contributions summary:Ian's commits indicate involvement in developing the CSS2 specification, specifically focusing on implementing and refining table-related features. Their contributions encompass modifications to table element definitions, including the introduction of a 'show' value for empty-cells, and the correction of errors in the document's formatting, structure, and examples. They also contributed by clarifying existing rules and removing unnecessary elements.
cssworking-groupdrafts
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