RE: Web service definition

Roger,

	Agreed, artifact might not be *THE* scientific term. By XML
artifacts, one could mean DTD or Schema or WSDL (which itself is an XML
fragment or ... - "stuff" might be the most nearest non-scientific term.
So if we change it to "whose interfaces and bindings are defined and
described using XML stuff" would it make more sense and less Indiana
Johns-ish ? The artifact meaning you are deriving from relates to
artifacts used in archeology.

	Some definitions which could fit our usage here:

	1)	An object produced or shaped by human craft, especially
a tool, weapon, or ornament of archaeological or historical interest.
(<KS> Web Services hopefully would survive far far ... :o))

	2)	Something viewed as a product of human conception or
agency rather than an inherent element

	3)	A structure or feature not normally present but visible
as a result of an external agent or action, such as one seen in a
microscopic specimen after fixation, or in an image produced by
radiology or electrocardiography.

	4)	An (inaccurate) observation, effect, or result,
especially one resulting from the technology used in scientific
investigation or from experimental error: The apparent pattern in the
data was an artifact of the collection method. 

	I think we are using artifact as in #4) above. As you say it
does have the connotation of inaccuracy.

cheers	 

|  -----Original Message-----
|  From: www-ws-arch-request@w3.org 
|  [mailto:www-ws-arch-request@w3.org] On Behalf Of Cutler, 
|  Roger (RogerCutler)
|  Sent: Monday, August 12, 2002 9:06 AM
|  To: www-ws-arch@w3.org
|  Subject: RE: Web service definition
|  
|  
|  
|  Since we are once again talking about the definition of web 
|  services, may I
|  once again express my reservations about using the word 
|  "artifacts".  If
|  this has any highly specific technical meaning I am unaware 
|  of it, and just
|  taking the "good old English" definition of the word I 
|  believe that it is
|  inappropriate in this context.  Look it up -- you will find 
|  phrases like
|  "especially of primitive human workmanship" and "structure 
|  ... due to death
|  ... not present during life".  Or, in more technical 
|  definitions, "A defect
|  or distortion of the image ...".  In other words, it always 
|  seems to carry
|  the connotation of being either a remnant or a mistake.  I 
|  don't think that
|  this is appropriate.
|  
|  Could we possibly use the word "message"?  If that is not 
|  OK, why not?
|  Perhaps the answer to that would suggest something less 
|  confusing than
|  "artifact".
|  
|  -----Original Message-----
|  From: Geoff Arnold [mailto:Geoff.Arnold@sun.com] 
|  Sent: Monday, August 12, 2002 8:41 AM
|  To: www-ws-arch@w3.org
|  Cc: Kate Stout
|  Subject: Re: Web service definition
|  
|  
|  
|  
|  On Monday, August 12, 2002, at 09:05  AM, Christopher B Ferris wrote:
|  
|  > Hmmm... I hadn't thought that my proposal only addressed 
|  how discovery 
|  > takes place. In fact, I had thought that there shouldn't be much 
|  > specificity in addressing how discovery takes place.
|  >
|  > Allow me to try again with a slight edit to my previous proposal:
|  >
|  >        Definition: A Web service is a software application
|  > identified by a
|  >        URI, whose interfaces and bindings are defined and described
|  >        using XML artifacts. This definition can be discovered by 
|  > other software
|  >       applications. These applications may then interact with the 
|  > Web
|  >          service, through the exchange of XML based messages via 
|  > internet
|  >          protocols, in a manner prescribed by its definition.
|  >
|  > Again, I don't think that we necessarily want to narrow the
|  > possibilities
|  > of how the description/definition is discovered.
|  
|  Next thing you'll be proposing standard LDAP schemas for 
|  WSDL! Anyway, this
|  looks OK. A couple more tweaks:
|  (1) Lose the "via".
|  (2) Drop "exchange", since it would seem to disallow one-way 
|  interaction
|       patterns.
|  (3) Change "This definition" to "Its definition" for grammatical 
|  precision.
|       ("Its" refers back to the service; "This" has no clear 
|  referent.)
|  
|  Definition:
|  A Web service is a software application identified by a
|  URI, whose interfaces and bindings are defined and described 
|  using XML
|  artifacts. Its definition can be discovered by other 
|  software applications.
|  These applications may then interact with the Web 
|  service in
|  a manner prescribed by its definition, using XML messages conveyed by
|  internet protocols.
|  
|  
|  
|

Received on Tuesday, 13 August 2002 02:31:01 UTC