Re: Resource definition

Mark Baker wrote on 02/18/2003 08:33:22 PM:

> 
> On Tue, Feb 18, 2003 at 04:38:54PM -0800, Burdett, David wrote:
> > In an earlier email, Francis McCabe said ...
> > 
> > >>>... to use one of Mark's earlier examples, turning on a light 
switch. The
> > state of the light is a representable resource; no question. The 
action of
> > flipping the switch is not so representable. The arm which is used to 
flip
> > the switch is, however, a resource; although any representation of it 
in
> > terms of bits is merely a symbol and not the real thing.<<<
> > 
> > So is the act of moving the arm to turn on/off the switch a resource?
> 
> Well, I suppose you could make it one, but I'm not sure what that
> would accomplish.
> 
> One doesn't need to talk about a switch, or the movement of a switch, or
> even a toggleSwitch() method, in order to effect a state change with the
> bulb, because the interaction style is one of *state transfer*; if I
> want to turn the bulb on, I just do a HTTP PUT containing a
> representation of the "on state" to the URI identifying the lightbulb.

Yes, assuming you knew what that representation was, and assuming that the
PUT method is supported by the resource...

> 
> MB
> -- 
> Mark Baker.   Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA.        http://www.markbaker.ca
> Web architecture consulting, technical reports, evaluation & analysis
> 

Cheers,

Christopher Ferris
Architect, Emerging e-business Industry Architecture
email: chrisfer@us.ibm.com
phone: +1 508 234 3624