Re: proposal for issue 393 (concrete packaging spec)

Consider packaging XML with non-XML content generally.  This
isn't really a SOAP issue.  We should be able to develop a solution
that would work for many XML languages and SOAP.

John.

At 02:04 PM 10/24/2002 -0400, Mark Jones wrote:

>I volunteered to put together a proposal for resolving issue 393:
>
>   "The Web Services Architecture Working Group encourages the XML
>   Protocol Working Group to produce a concrete packaging (attachment)
>   specification to validate the SOAP/1.2 Attachment Feature
>   specification. A normative standard for a concrete specification is
>   also important for reference from other standards and specifications
>   and is considered a high priority by the WSAWG.
>
>   The XML Protocol Working Group may be the most appropriate venue for
>   this work; if not, the Web Services Architecture Working Group will
>   probably recommend that a new Working Group be chartered to do this in
>   the near future because the lack of a concrete specification that can
>   be the basis for interoperable SOAP attachments implementations is a
>   hole in the Web services architecture that needs to be addressed as
>   soon as possible."
>
>
>Background
>
>The Web Services Architecture Working Group has identified the lack
>of standards for a concrete packaging specification as a serious
>concern.  A dependence upon a packaging specification exists in
>many enterprises:
>  * other standards such as ebXML
>  * frameworks such as the SOAP with Attachments API for Java
>    (SAAJ) and JAX-RPC
>  * company specifications and best common practice profiles
>
>Two packaging mechanisms have attracted particular attention:
>  1) a MIME-multipart scheme, SOAP Messages with Attachments (SwA)
>     [W3C Note, http://www.w3.org/TR/SOAP-attachments].
>  2) the Direct Internet Message Encapsulation (DIME) scheme [IETF Drafts,
>     http://www.ietf.org/internet-drafts/draft-nielsen-dime-02.txt and
>     http://www.ietf.org/internet-drafts/draft-nielsen-dime-soap-01.txt].
>
>
>Proposal
>
>Given the experience represented in the XML Protocol WG, the
>importance of a concrete packaging spec as recognized by the Web
>Services Architecture Working Group, and the potential issues involved
>in validating the SOAP/1.2 Attachment Feature specification, the XML
>Protocol WG should accept the challenge of addressing this issue.
>
>In addressing the issue, the XML Protocol WG would
>  * remain cognizant of the general imperative to prefer re-use
>    to invention
>  * acknowledge the mind share that already exists with SwA and DIME
>  * determine whether those schemes in their current form satisfy
>    all the relevant constraints imposed by the SOAP 1.2 Attachment Feature,
>    taking into account additional LC issues raised against that spec
>    such as 390, 391 and 392.
>    http://www.w3.org/2000/xp/Group/xmlp-lc-issues#x390
>    http://www.w3.org/2000/xp/Group/xmlp-lc-issues#x391
>    http://www.w3.org/2000/xp/Group/xmlp-lc-issues#x392
>  * recommend minimal changes to these frameworks, create best common
>    practice profiles, or version the specs as required
>
>In the case of SwA, published as a W3C Note, it may be possible to see
>this "qualifying" activity as creating a new version of SwA (subject to
>IPR issues).
>
>In the case of DIME, published as an IETF draft, it is not clear to me
>how versioning it as a W3C spec could/would work.  (As an IETF draft,
>we cannot normatively reference it, even to bless it in a best common
>practice profile.)
>
>
>Timing
>
>This activity would be independent of the effort to standardize SOAP
>1.2 and should not be construed as holding up progress on it in any
>way.  The WG member effort on packaging would be subordinate to
>efforts to get SOAP 1.2 out.  If the packaging effort cannot be
>completed within the time frame of the current charter (end of 2002),
>an extension would be sought to complete the activity (and any other
>additional work also accepted by the WG).

______________________________________________________
John J. Barton          email:  John_Barton@hpl.hp.com
http://www.hpl.hp.com/personal/John_Barton/index.htm
MS 1U-17  Hewlett-Packard Labs
1501 Page Mill Road              phone: (650)-236-2888
Palo Alto CA  94304-1126         FAX:   (650)-857-5100

Received on Thursday, 24 October 2002 18:11:42 UTC