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Subject: RE: [xri] Issue 1: Clarifying * Semantics



I could be mistaken, but I thought Drummond concluded by the end of that
thread that making star and slash equivalent separators wasn't feasible, =
and
that star was always a second level separator, subordinate to slash.
=20
Dave

  _____ =20

From: Victor Grey [mailto:victor@idcommons.org]
Sent: Thu 7/8/2004 1:17 AM
To: xri@lists.oasis-open.org
Subject: Re: [xri] Issue 1: Clarifying * Semantics



Wachob, Gabe wrote:
> As to whether this is an aesthetic-only change, I'll let the initial=20
> proponents of this proposal speak up. I think its largely aesthetic

I don't think anyone is claiming it's an aesthetic change. Au=20
contraire, it's somewhat uglier. In my mind the crucial point is the=20
philosophical/worldview imperative that Drummond wrote about on 6/11=20
(quoted below) - the need to highlight the distinction between a=20
hierarchical relationship and a peer relationship.

-Victor Grey

Drummond on 6/11:
> First, just to make it clear, I agree with everyone that if the choice =

> is
> simply between the "readability" of the two examples given below, =
i.e.:
>
> xri:@:3*:4*:5/:6*:7
> or
> xri:@:3:4:5/:6:7
>
> ...then of course it appears to be a no-brainer. The latter is more=20
> compact
> and, as Peter says, "much easier to read".
>
> But therein lies the issue. What is "easier to read" depends on what=20
> you are
> reading for. What I realized laying in bed at 4am this morning is that =

> I am
> reading for something entirely different. But to explain this requires
> explaining the entire worldview behind this perspective, and entire
> worldviews are not easy to explain, so please bear with me while I =
try.
>
> In this second worldview, * would not be considered a "secondary=20
> hierarchy
> character", but an "alternative hierarchy character" on an equal=20
> footing
> with slash.
>
> I can just hear Dave screaming right now, "What does Drummond mean, =
'an
> "alternative hierarchy character" on an equal footing with slash'?? =
How
> could there be such a thing? Slash is THE 2396 hierarchy character! It
> defines 2396 segments. The only option we have is to define =
subsegments
> within slash segments!"
>
> But this is exactly what I mean about two entirely different=20
> worldviews. In
> the 2396 worldview the world is purely hierarchical. There is only=20
> slash
> because there is only hierarchy.
>
> It's pretty ironic, then, that URIs based on 2396 are the very basis=20
> of the
> World Wide Web, which is the very opposite of hierarchy. It's a=20
> peer-to-peer
> web. Any page can link to any page.
>
> Laying in bed at 4am, I did the following thought experiment, "Using
> conventional URIs, is there any way you can address the LINK between=20
> two web
> pages?" In other words, not the URI of Page A or the URI of Page B,=20
> but the
> LINK from Page A to Page B. Literally, the A tag present in the HTML=20
> of Page
> A that links to Page B.
>
> There is certainly no standard way, at least that I know of. So I=20
> started
> thinking through how you would do it. If Page A was expressed as=20
> XHTML, then
> the actual node of the XHTML document that contains the link to Page B =

> would
> at least be addressable using an XPath expression under the URI of=20
> Page A.
> So you could have something like:
>
> http://www.example.com/Page-A#Xpath-to-A-tag-linking-Page-B
>
> Of course, there is no spec for doing this that I am aware of. However =

> it
> wouldn't be hard to construct one. Since you know the link is in an A=20
> tag,
> you'd just need a standard XPath query that says, "Give me the A tag=20
> whose
> HREF attribute equals the following value" and then supply the target=20
> URI as
> a paremeter. Say this query was called "Xpath-A-ref". Then any site=20
> that
> supported this query could resolve a URI that looked like the=20
> following:
>
> http://www.example.com/Page-A?Xpath-A-ref
<http://www.example.com/Page-A?Xpath-A-ref&HREF=3D>
&HREF=3D"http://www.site.com/
> Page-B"
>
> Such an address would actually let you address Page B in the context=20
> of Page
> A. It lets you construct a path ACROSS pages, not just DOWN the DNS=20
> tree and
> local file path hierarchy to a specific page.
>
> Why would you want to be able to address across Web pages? If you=20
> wanted to
> be able to follow the path of who is linked to who. It lets you test
> assertions about relationships between pages. If the address above=20
> resolves,
> it tells you Page A is linked to Page B. If it doesn't, they aren't.
>
> Now, imagine if there was: a) a standard URI syntax character that=20
> equates
> to the link query operation "?x-path-A-ref" above, and b) a standard=20
> way in
> URI syntax to nest one URI inside another. Let's say the standard link =

> query
> character was * and the nesting syntax was to enclose the nested URI =
in
> parentheses. Then the URI above could be expressed much more compactly =

> and
> readably as:
>
>       http://www.example.com/Page-A*(http://www.site.com/Page-B)
>
> Now let's take one more step. Say that the author of Page A had his=20
> own name
> for Page B inside the HREF tag that points to=20
> "http://www.site.com/Page-B";.
> Say this name was "Glockenspiel". This is really a relative identifier =

> for
> Page B, since it's relative to the Web page=20
> http://www.example.com/Page-A.
> But in the context of this Web page, it's very likely to be unique,=20
> since
> the author of Page A is unlikely to create two outgoing links to=20
> different
> resources on the same Web page and label both the A tags identically.
>
> In this case there is a second way to address the link between Page A=20
> and
> Page B using this relative identifier. This would look like:
>
>       http://www.example.com/Page-A*(Glockenspiel)
>
> I know this example has been quite extensive, but as you can see, the=20
> point
> is that in this alternative worldview - this Web-based worldview -
> peer-to-peer linking relationships have an equal status with=20
> hierarchical
> relationships. Neither is "good" or "bad". Neither is "primary" or
> "secondary". They are simply equally valid. Like Cartesian and radian
> coordinate systems, they both let you address any point on a plane -=20
> it's
> just that each one can be much more appropriate for certain tasks.
>
> It follows then that in this worldview, the primary failing of 2396=20
> syntax
> is that it does not accommodate the peer-to-peer linking worldview. It =

> only
> accommodates the hierarchical worldview. It has no syntax for=20
> addressing
> link relationships, nor for nesting identifiers for this purpose =
(i.e.,
> cross-references). In syntactic terms, it has only /, and no * nor ().
>
> Those of you who know me know why I am so passionate about this=20
> subject. To
> get from the Web to the Dataweb, we must be able to express the links
> between data and the links between data sharing authorities. Suddenly=20
> it is
> as important (if not more important) to be able to address the source=20
> of
> authority and permission in a data sharing relationship as it is to be =

> able
> to address the data being shared.
>
> For example, look at the following sample XRI:
>
> xri:xri-A/(xri-B)*(/($contract)/this-contract/($v1))*(/(+email)/work/
> ($v2))
>
> (Note that the values "xri-A" and "xri-B" are placeholders for the=20
> actual
> XRIs for Authority A and Authority B, and "$contract" is the proposed=20
> XRI
> service dictionary identifier for XDI link contracts.) This is from a=20
> thread
> about potential XDI contract addressing available at
> http://wiki.idcommons.net/moin.cgi/DataSharing#head
> -0bd543034533c5641c0beacf
> 65be418a7a9c7fc5.
>
> Although this particular example is in the context of XDI (and uses=20
> only a
> proposed addressing syntax in that context), what I believe it=20
> illustrates
> is the tremendous importance, in that context, of link relationships.=20
> For
> example, this XRI expresses that authority A's relationship with=20
> authority B
> (xri-A/xri-B) is linked to a link contract from authority A
> (/($contract)/this-contract/($v1)) which is linked to a specific item=20
> of
> data from authority A (/(+email)/work/($v2)).
>
> So, in conclusion:
>
> * In the hierarchical-only worldview, / reigns supreme, and therefore=20
> the
> distinction between * and : as "secondary hierarchy" characters =
appears
> relatively minor.
>
> * In the combined hierarchy-and-peer-to-peer-link worldviews, / and *=20
> are
> equally important and equally valid first-level delimiters. / is used=20
> to
> express for hierarchical relationships between resources and * is used =

> to
> express peer-to-peer linking relationships between resources. In this
> worldview, both "/:" and "*:" would be equally valid, as colon would=20
> always
> be used as the prefix for a persistent identifier.
>
> I believe this worldview is not unique to XDI. Although XDI=20
> architecture is
> fundamentally based on the ability to express links between resources, =

> and
> it uses XRIs for this purpose, I believe that establishing the=20
> syntactic
> "equal footing" of * and / for the purpose of enabling the expression=20
> of
> peer-to-peer linking vs. hierarchical relationships could apply to =
many
> other uses of XRI beyond the scope of XDI.
>
> I hope this explanation helps bridge the gap between these two=20
> worldviews.
>
> =3DDrummond


To unsubscribe from this mailing list (and be removed from the roster of =
the
OASIS TC), go to
http://www.oasis-open.org/apps/org/workgroup/xri/members/leave_workgroup.=
php
.




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<HTML><HEAD>
<META HTTP-EQUIV=3D"Content-Type" CONTENT=3D"text/html; =
charset=3Dus-ascii">
<TITLE>Message</TITLE>

<META content=3D"MSHTML 6.00.2800.1400" name=3DGENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004>Drummond's mail of 6/11&nbsp;spurred a flurry =
of XDI=20
related mail.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT><FONT face=3DTahoma =
color=3D#0000ff=20
size=3D2><SPAN class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN =
class=3D686231306-08072004>From=20
my recollection, it was determined that while it's imperative that this =
(and=20
other) relationship data is addressable,&nbsp;duplicating it =
into&nbsp;the=20
identifier is inappropriate.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT><FONT face=3DTahoma =
color=3D#0000ff=20
size=3D2><SPAN class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN =
class=3D686231306-08072004>The=20
conversations never made their way back to the XRI lists because current =
XRI=20
syntax supports addressing this vital relationship=20
information.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN =
class=3D686231306-08072004>I'd=20
be happy to continue the discussions on the XDI lists if necessary, but =
the XDI=20
group is far from recommending a change to the XRI =
syntax.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT><FONT face=3DTahoma =
color=3D#0000ff=20
size=3D2><SPAN class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN =
class=3D686231306-08072004>In=20
fact, from an XRI perspective, any group&nbsp;that&nbsp;recommends =
changing XRI=20
syntax to support the storage of data in identifiers&nbsp;is likely =
to&nbsp;meet=20
with some pretty serious opposition.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004>=3DLoren</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTahoma color=3D#0000ff size=3D2><SPAN=20
class=3D686231306-08072004></SPAN></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=3DOutlookMessageHeader lang=3Den-us dir=3Dltr =
align=3Dleft><FONT face=3DTahoma=20
size=3D2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> Dave McAlpin=20
[mailto:Dave.McAlpin@epok.net] <BR><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, July 07, 2004 =
10:22=20
PM<BR><B>To:</B> Victor Grey; =
xri@lists.oasis-open.org<BR><B>Subject:</B> RE:=20
[xri] Issue 1: Clarifying * Semantics<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV id=3DidOWAReplyText44832 dir=3Dltr>
<DIV dir=3Dltr><FONT face=3DArial color=3D#000000 size=3D2>I could be =
mistaken, but I=20
thought Drummond concluded by the end of that thread that making star =
and slash=20
equivalent separators wasn't feasible, and that star was always a second =
level=20
separator, subordinate to slash.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=3Dltr><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV dir=3Dltr><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Dave</FONT></DIV></DIV>
<DIV dir=3Dltr><BR>
<HR tabIndex=3D-1>
<FONT face=3DTahoma size=3D2><B>From:</B> Victor Grey=20
[mailto:victor@idcommons.org]<BR><B>Sent:</B> Thu 7/8/2004 1:17 =
AM<BR><B>To:</B>=20
xri@lists.oasis-open.org<BR><B>Subject:</B> Re: [xri] Issue 1: =
Clarifying *=20
Semantics<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV>
<P><FONT size=3D2>Wachob, Gabe wrote:<BR>&gt; As to whether this is an=20
aesthetic-only change, I'll let the initial&nbsp;<BR>&gt; proponents of =
this=20
proposal speak up. I think its largely aesthetic<BR><BR>I don't think =
anyone is=20
claiming it's an aesthetic change. Au&nbsp;<BR>contraire, it's somewhat =
uglier.=20
In my mind the crucial point is the&nbsp;<BR>philosophical/worldview =
imperative=20
that Drummond wrote about on 6/11&nbsp;<BR>(quoted below) - the need to=20
highlight the distinction between a&nbsp;<BR>hierarchical relationship =
and a=20
peer relationship.<BR><BR>-Victor Grey<BR><BR>Drummond on 6/11:<BR>&gt; =
First,=20
just to make it clear, I agree with everyone that if the =
choice&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
is<BR>&gt; simply between the "readability" of the two examples given =
below,=20
i.e.:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; xri:@:3*:4*:5/:6*:7<BR>&gt; or<BR>&gt;=20
xri:@:3:4:5/:6:7<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; ...then of course it appears to be a=20
no-brainer. The latter is more&nbsp;<BR>&gt; compact<BR>&gt; and, as =
Peter says,=20
"much easier to read".<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; But therein lies the issue. What =
is=20
"easier to read" depends on what&nbsp;<BR>&gt; you are<BR>&gt; reading =
for. What=20
I realized laying in bed at 4am this morning is that&nbsp;<BR>&gt; I =
am<BR>&gt;=20
reading for something entirely different. But to explain this =
requires<BR>&gt;=20
explaining the entire worldview behind this perspective, and =
entire<BR>&gt;=20
worldviews are not easy to explain, so please bear with me while I=20
try.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; In this second worldview, * would not be considered =
a=20
"secondary&nbsp;<BR>&gt; hierarchy<BR>&gt; character", but an =
"alternative=20
hierarchy character" on an equal&nbsp;<BR>&gt; footing<BR>&gt; with=20
slash.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; I can just hear Dave screaming right now, "What =
does=20
Drummond mean, 'an<BR>&gt; "alternative hierarchy character" on an equal =
footing=20
with slash'?? How<BR>&gt; could there be such a thing? Slash is THE 2396 =

hierarchy character! It<BR>&gt; defines 2396 segments. The only option =
we have=20
is to define subsegments<BR>&gt; within slash segments!"<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; =
But=20
this is exactly what I mean about two entirely different&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
worldviews. In<BR>&gt; the 2396 worldview the world is purely =
hierarchical.=20
There is only&nbsp;<BR>&gt; slash<BR>&gt; because there is only=20
hierarchy.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; It's pretty ironic, then, that URIs based on =
2396 are=20
the very basis&nbsp;<BR>&gt; of the<BR>&gt; World Wide Web, which is the =
very=20
opposite of hierarchy. It's a&nbsp;<BR>&gt; peer-to-peer<BR>&gt; web. =
Any page=20
can link to any page.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; Laying in bed at 4am, I did the =
following=20
thought experiment, "Using<BR>&gt; conventional URIs, is there any way =
you can=20
address the LINK between&nbsp;<BR>&gt; two web<BR>&gt; pages?" In other =
words,=20
not the URI of Page A or the URI of Page B,&nbsp;<BR>&gt; but =
the<BR>&gt; LINK=20
from Page A to Page B. Literally, the A tag present in the =
HTML&nbsp;<BR>&gt; of=20
Page<BR>&gt; A that links to Page B.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; There is certainly =
no=20
standard way, at least that I know of. So I&nbsp;<BR>&gt; =
started<BR>&gt;=20
thinking through how you would do it. If Page A was expressed =
as&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
XHTML, then<BR>&gt; the actual node of the XHTML document that contains =
the link=20
to Page B&nbsp;<BR>&gt; would<BR>&gt; at least be addressable using an =
XPath=20
expression under the URI of&nbsp;<BR>&gt; Page A.<BR>&gt; So you could =
have=20
something like:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; <A=20
href=3D"http://www.example.com/Page-A#Xpath-to-A-tag-linking-Page-B";>http=
://www.example.com/Page-A#Xpath-to-A-tag-linking-Page-B</A><BR>&gt;<BR>&g=
t;=20
Of course, there is no spec for doing this that I am aware of.=20
However&nbsp;<BR>&gt; it<BR>&gt; wouldn't be hard to construct one. =
Since you=20
know the link is in an A&nbsp;<BR>&gt; tag,<BR>&gt; you'd just need a =
standard=20
XPath query that says, "Give me the A tag&nbsp;<BR>&gt; whose<BR>&gt; =
HREF=20
attribute equals the following value" and then supply the =
target&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
URI as<BR>&gt; a paremeter. Say this query was called "Xpath-A-ref". =
Then any=20
site&nbsp;<BR>&gt; that<BR>&gt; supported this query could resolve a URI =
that=20
looked like the&nbsp;<BR>&gt; following:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; <A=20
href=3D"http://www.example.com/Page-A?Xpath-A-ref&amp;HREF=3D";>http://www=
.example.com/Page-A?Xpath-A-ref&amp;HREF=3D</A>"<A=20
href=3D"http://www.site.com/";>http://www.site.com/</A><BR>&gt;=20
Page-B"<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; Such an address would actually let you address =
Page B in=20
the context&nbsp;<BR>&gt; of Page<BR>&gt; A. It lets you construct a =
path ACROSS=20
pages, not just DOWN the DNS&nbsp;<BR>&gt; tree and<BR>&gt; local file =
path=20
hierarchy to a specific page.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; Why would you want to be =
able to=20
address across Web pages? If you&nbsp;<BR>&gt; wanted to<BR>&gt; be able =
to=20
follow the path of who is linked to who. It lets you test<BR>&gt; =
assertions=20
about relationships between pages. If the address above&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
resolves,<BR>&gt; it tells you Page A is linked to Page B. If it =
doesn't, they=20
aren't.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; Now, imagine if there was: a) a standard URI =
syntax=20
character that&nbsp;<BR>&gt; equates<BR>&gt; to the link query operation =

"?x-path-A-ref" above, and b) a standard&nbsp;<BR>&gt; way in<BR>&gt; =
URI syntax=20
to nest one URI inside another. Let's say the standard =
link&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
query<BR>&gt; character was * and the nesting syntax was to enclose the =
nested=20
URI in<BR>&gt; parentheses. Then the URI above could be expressed much =
more=20
compactly&nbsp;<BR>&gt; and<BR>&gt; readably as:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt;=20
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <A=20
href=3D"http://www.example.com/Page-A*(http://www.site.com/Page-B";>http:/=
/www.example.com/Page-A*(http://www.site.com/Page-B</A>)<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; =

Now let's take one more step. Say that the author of Page A had=20
his&nbsp;<BR>&gt; own name<BR>&gt; for Page B inside the HREF tag that =
points=20
to&nbsp;<BR>&gt; "<A=20
href=3D"http://www.site.com/Page-B";>http://www.site.com/Page-B</A>".<BR>&=
gt; Say=20
this name was "Glockenspiel". This is really a relative =
identifier&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
for<BR>&gt; Page B, since it's relative to the Web page&nbsp;<BR>&gt; <A =

href=3D"http://www.example.com/Page-A";>http://www.example.com/Page-A</A>.=
<BR>&gt;=20
But in the context of this Web page, it's very likely to be=20
unique,&nbsp;<BR>&gt; since<BR>&gt; the author of Page A is unlikely to =
create=20
two outgoing links to&nbsp;<BR>&gt; different<BR>&gt; resources on the =
same Web=20
page and label both the A tags identically.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; In this case =
there=20
is a second way to address the link between Page A&nbsp;<BR>&gt; =
and<BR>&gt;=20
Page B using this relative identifier. This would look =
like:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt;=20
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <A=20
href=3D"http://www.example.com/Page-A*(Glockenspiel">http://www.example.c=
om/Page-A*(Glockenspiel</A>)<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt;=20
I know this example has been quite extensive, but as you can see,=20
the&nbsp;<BR>&gt; point<BR>&gt; is that in this alternative worldview - =
this=20
Web-based worldview -<BR>&gt; peer-to-peer linking relationships have an =
equal=20
status with&nbsp;<BR>&gt; hierarchical<BR>&gt; relationships. Neither is =
"good"=20
or "bad". Neither is "primary" or<BR>&gt; "secondary". They are simply =
equally=20
valid. Like Cartesian and radian<BR>&gt; coordinate systems, they both =
let you=20
address any point on a plane -&nbsp;<BR>&gt; it's<BR>&gt; just that each =
one can=20
be much more appropriate for certain tasks.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; It follows =
then that=20
in this worldview, the primary failing of 2396&nbsp;<BR>&gt; =
syntax<BR>&gt; is=20
that it does not accommodate the peer-to-peer linking worldview.=20
It&nbsp;<BR>&gt; only<BR>&gt; accommodates the hierarchical worldview. =
It has no=20
syntax for&nbsp;<BR>&gt; addressing<BR>&gt; link relationships, nor for =
nesting=20
identifiers for this purpose (i.e.,<BR>&gt; cross-references). In =
syntactic=20
terms, it has only /, and no * nor ().<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; Those of you who =
know me=20
know why I am so passionate about this&nbsp;<BR>&gt; subject. To<BR>&gt; =
get=20
from the Web to the Dataweb, we must be able to express the =
links<BR>&gt;=20
between data and the links between data sharing authorities.=20
Suddenly&nbsp;<BR>&gt; it is<BR>&gt; as important (if not more =
important) to be=20
able to address the source&nbsp;<BR>&gt; of<BR>&gt; authority and =
permission in=20
a data sharing relationship as it is to be&nbsp;<BR>&gt; able<BR>&gt; to =
address=20
the data being shared.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; For example, look at the =
following sample=20
XRI:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt;=20
xri:xri-A/(xri-B)*(/($contract)/this-contract/($v1))*(/(+email)/work/<BR>=
&gt;=20
($v2))<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; (Note that the values "xri-A" and "xri-B" are=20
placeholders for the&nbsp;<BR>&gt; actual<BR>&gt; XRIs for Authority A =
and=20
Authority B, and "$contract" is the proposed&nbsp;<BR>&gt; XRI<BR>&gt; =
service=20
dictionary identifier for XDI link contracts.) This is from =
a&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
thread<BR>&gt; about potential XDI contract addressing available =
at<BR>&gt; <A=20
href=3D"http://wiki.idcommons.net/moin.cgi/DataSharing#head";>http://wiki.=
idcommons.net/moin.cgi/DataSharing#head</A><BR>&gt;=20
-0bd543034533c5641c0beacf<BR>&gt; 65be418a7a9c7fc5.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; =
Although=20
this particular example is in the context of XDI (and uses&nbsp;<BR>&gt; =
only=20
a<BR>&gt; proposed addressing syntax in that context), what I believe=20
it&nbsp;<BR>&gt; illustrates<BR>&gt; is the tremendous importance, in =
that=20
context, of link relationships.&nbsp;<BR>&gt; For<BR>&gt; example, this =
XRI=20
expresses that authority A's relationship with&nbsp;<BR>&gt; authority =
B<BR>&gt;=20
(xri-A/xri-B) is linked to a link contract from authority A<BR>&gt;=20
(/($contract)/this-contract/($v1)) which is linked to a specific=20
item&nbsp;<BR>&gt; of<BR>&gt; data from authority A=20
(/(+email)/work/($v2)).<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; So, in =
conclusion:<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; * In=20
the hierarchical-only worldview, / reigns supreme, and =
therefore&nbsp;<BR>&gt;=20
the<BR>&gt; distinction between * and : as "secondary hierarchy" =
characters=20
appears<BR>&gt; relatively minor.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; * In the combined=20
hierarchy-and-peer-to-peer-link worldviews, / and *&nbsp;<BR>&gt; =
are<BR>&gt;=20
equally important and equally valid first-level delimiters. / is=20
used&nbsp;<BR>&gt; to<BR>&gt; express for hierarchical relationships =
between=20
resources and * is used&nbsp;<BR>&gt; to<BR>&gt; express peer-to-peer =
linking=20
relationships between resources. In this<BR>&gt; worldview, both "/:" =
and "*:"=20
would be equally valid, as colon would&nbsp;<BR>&gt; always<BR>&gt; be =
used as=20
the prefix for a persistent identifier.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; I believe this =
worldview=20
is not unique to XDI. Although XDI&nbsp;<BR>&gt; architecture is<BR>&gt; =

fundamentally based on the ability to express links between=20
resources,&nbsp;<BR>&gt; and<BR>&gt; it uses XRIs for this purpose, I =
believe=20
that establishing the&nbsp;<BR>&gt; syntactic<BR>&gt; "equal footing" of =
* and /=20
for the purpose of enabling the expression&nbsp;<BR>&gt; of<BR>&gt; =
peer-to-peer=20
linking vs. hierarchical relationships could apply to many<BR>&gt; other =
uses of=20
XRI beyond the scope of XDI.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt; I hope this explanation =
helps=20
bridge the gap between these two&nbsp;<BR>&gt; =
worldviews.<BR>&gt;<BR>&gt;=20
=3DDrummond<BR><BR><BR>To unsubscribe from this mailing list (and be =
removed from=20
the roster of the OASIS TC), go to <A=20
href=3D"http://www.oasis-open.org/apps/org/workgroup/xri/members/leave_wo=
rkgroup.php">http://www.oasis-open.org/apps/org/workgroup/xri/members/lea=
ve_workgroup.php</A>.<BR><BR></FONT></P></DIV></BODY></HTML>

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