RE: Docushare and WebDAV model

We need to be aware of the difference between UI and protocol. 

The WebDAV protocol provides the various mechanisms you need to perform the
actions you want. Creating a flat namespace, putting resources into
collections defined in that namespace, the use of error codes to enforce the
flat namespace, etc. However WebDAV does not provide the UI that would make
such a store sensible to a user.

Thus users interacting with your store will need to use programs which
present your stores in a reasonable way. Otherwise you will have to
synthesize a mapping of your flat store into a hierarchical store. That is,
the actual store is flat but you create a phantom store that looks
hierarchical. It is not the protocol which is forcing you to do this, it is
the types of clients people are writing to use the protocol.

If the general user population decides your model is the best one then
clients will interact with DAV stores using your model.

However, to be clear, this is not a protocol issue. It is a UI issue.

		Yaron

> -----Original Message-----
> From: John Turner [mailto:johnt@cgocable.net]
> Sent: Thursday, August 13, 1998 9:05 AM
> To: w3c-dist-auth@w3.org
> Subject: RE: Docushare and WebDAV model
> 
> 
> At 05:59 PM 8/10/98 -0700, you wrote:
> >Would not references solve the problem? Your entire 
> namespace is flat and
> >your collections contain nothing but references.
> >	Yaron
> >
> 
> Yes, that could be done.  It would allow the documents and 
> collections to be
> presented.  Unfortunately edit operations would be something 
> of a problem.
> A generic WebDAV client would find it a difficult space to 
> work with.  The
> only place that documents can be created is in the collection 
> representing
> the flat set of documents.  The server would either have to 
> disallow PUTing
> (etc) of documents anywhere but in the proper directory, or 
> else magic would
> have to happen (accepting the PUT and then moving it and creating a
> reference, or some such).
> 
> John Turner
> johnt@cgocable.net
>

Received on Friday, 14 August 1998 16:15:40 UTC