[topicmaps-comment] topicmaps.org namespace,and ISO 13250 XTM ( Re: referring to a topic from outside a TM )

[Bernard Vatant <bernard.vatant@mondeca.com>]

Thomas

I'm glad you point at that issue.

> Secondly, http://www.topicmaps.org/xtm/1.0/ is a valid namespace name -
> but not a valid DTD location. BTW - is there a well defined, persistent
> location? (good URIs never change)

This is an important and still pending problem, linked to historical conditions of
development of XTM 1.0.
www.topicmaps.org  domain was owned privately by one member of XTM Authoring Group (alias
TopicMaps.Org) until August 2001. At that time TopicMaps.Org decided to dissolve into
OASIS, and the domain name ownership was transferred to OASIS (given, sold, I don't really
figure), and the content has been hosted on OASIS servers since, AFAIK.  But in fact there
is so far no authority in OASIS in charge of maintaining or updating the content under
that domain name, until the to-be Topic Maps OASIS Member Section becomes a legal entity.
So everything is stable by lack of maintenance or updating. That means lot of stuff under
that domain is completelely obsolete and misleading. For example whatever is at
http://www.topicmaps.org/about.html is presently completely outdated, because since August
2001, TopicMaps.Org has no more legal existence !!!

I keep seeing that as a major issue, because the more visible pages, and widely referred
to, about the TM standard on the web provide obviously obsolete information, that nobody
has the authority (or will?) to update ... I've been pointing at it several times since
that summer, but nothing happens.

OTOH the specification itself - namely XTM 1.0 DTD - has been adopted in December 2001 as
a part of ISO 13250, and could (should?) in fact now be referred to as "ISO 13250 XTM".
But we have to admit that this is not enough clearly advertised ... and of course not
advertised on topicmaps.org, for the above reasons.
Publication of ISO standards has a poor visibility on the Web, and finding ISO 13250 XTM
is a challenge indeed.
If you look at the announce by Jim Mason:
http://www.oasis-open.org/cover/ISO13250-XTM-20011214.html

You will not find any reference to *any* URI for neither XTM 1.0 nor ISO 13250 XTM.

So what is visible is obsolete, and what should be the authoritative standard address is
nowhere to be found ...

Why don't we have a reference document, both approved by ISO JTC1/SC 34 and OASIS Topic
Maps TCs - which are so far the only legal entities having succeeded to TopicMaps.Org,
until to-be Member Section becomes a real entity - providing clearly the status of topic
maps standard(s), including publishing legal authority, namespace, versioning, and the
like ???

Bottom line: the status of www.topicmaps.org is something to be settled ASAP, so that the
pages can be at least updated.

Bernard