08.08.07

Public vs Member-only URIs

Posted in TC Process, spec writing, spec-related at 4:17 pm by Mary McRae

When trying to access an information asset created by an OASIS Technical Committee and uploaded to the OASIS document repository, you may be challenged to enter a user name and password. The OASIS Technical Committee Process requires that all work of any technical committee must always be publicly available. So where’s the disconnect?

Like many content content creation systems, the software in use by OASIS Technical Committees was designed around a notion of “workgroups” where only those who are part of the group can view the information stored. When an information asset of any kind is uploaded into the document repository, a URI is generated in the following format:

http://www.oasis-open.org/apps/org/workgroup/{tc-abbreviation}/
download.php/{uid}/{filename}

where:

  • {tc-abbreviation} represents the short name of the technical committee (i.e. dita),
  • {uid} represents a 5-digit unique identifier, and
  • {filename} represents the actual name of the information asset.

This URI is only accessible by OASIS members; that is, someone with an OASIS login and password.

There’s a little trick that will convert any URI in the format above into one that is publicly accessible. Replace “apps/org/workgroup/{tc-abbreviation}/” with “committees” and the resource will become accessible by all.

http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/
download.php/{uid}/{filename}

If you are passing along a URI for information that has been uploaded into the document repository, please be sure to use the publicly-accessible version. If you are trying to access a document but are asked to enter a user name and password, convert the URI to bypass the challenge.

NOTE: All information assets uploaded to the OASIS Library (docs.oasis-open.org) are publicly accessible; there is no notion of “workgroup.”

07.10.07

You Have an Issue With that?

Posted in spec-related, template usage at 7:33 pm by Mary McRae

Whether you’re just starting to work on a new specification or you’re working on Version 5.0, chances are you have some issues, problem spots, holes, or other things that need to be captured, tracked, discussed, and resolved before you call it a day. Oftentimes a question will pop up on a list that will identify a weakness or inaccuracy, or it could be something someone said on a conference call. Having a system in place can not only make everyone’s lives easier (no “lost” issues, no “backtracking” previously-resolved issues, the ability to track progress, focus discussions, etc.) it can also provide a public record of work to be done and decisions made to date.

Here are several options that are currently in use by various TCs.

XML

This one is my favorite. There’s a schema and a stylesheet that produces a wonderful report full of both internal as well as external hypertext links back to source documents or resolutions. You can always view the most recent list, or you can select any of the historical versions from the directory listing. In order to take advantage of this solution you’ll need someone to volunteer as Issues List Editor and be willing to work in XML.

http://docs.oasis-open.org/ws-sx/issues/Issues.xml

Spreadsheet

This is probably the low-tech solution — you’ll be hard-pressed to find someone who isn’t familiar with using a spreadsheet for tabular information. The spreadsheet itself may be made available in several formats simply by uploading the file to the group’s document repository or by sending to me for upload in the OASIS Library (a/k/a “docs”). The advantage to the OASIS Library is that a single URI can be bookmarked that will always deliver the most recent version while retaining version-specific URIs; the downside is that until development is further along, upload access is restricted to the TC Admin.

(spreadsheet example)

Wiki

The wiki solution makes it easy for any TC member to add/update the Issues List. OASIS provides a wiki for each TC upon request. Previous versions can be viewed/compared.

http://wiki.oasis-open.org/xacml/IssuesList

Hopefully that gives you some ideas and you’ll find one of these methods perfect for your participants. If you’d like more help, you know where to ask.