Re: [manifest] Define identity of a web app. (#272)

> If defining the identity of a web app is outside the scope of the "Manifest for web applications" specification, then where should it be defined instead? It seems like an important thing to standardise and I'd like to have that conversation.

What I'm saying is that I just don't see how manifest URL could be an app identifier when:
* multiple manifests may have the same URL (dynamically chosen based on HTTP headers etc)
* multiple apps can use the same manifest hosted at the same URL
* the manifest itself doesn't have to point to a `start_url` and even if it does, it is just a hint for the UA, which may choose to ignore it. So it doesn't even need to tell the UA how to "start" the application

All of the above things are features of the manifest that make it a supplementary source of information, but not a defining entity.

> Surely a manifest for a different app is a different resource and therefore by definition should have a different URL?

Not necessarily. An author may wish to create many apps and provide just one manifest to indicate the authorship, CSP policy, and other "common" data.

Having said that, I agree that having a web-wide identifier for apps would be a big win. Just not sure that the manifest, as currently drafted is a good basis for that.

---
Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub:
https://github.com/w3c/manifest/issues/272#issuecomment-69749841