[Css-dts] Put latest drafts of SLE API documentation on docushare?

[Michael Stoloff]

John,

The purpose of this message is to seek certain clarification with respect 
to your request.  The following background information may be relevant in 
this context.

The DSN as an SLE service provider has inter-operated for actual mission 
operations with ESA, ISAS (now JIXA), JHU/APL, and NASA/JPL SLE service 
users.  Further, JPL flight projects have now inter-operated as SLE service 
users with an ESA SLE service provider.  Based on that collective 
experience, I believe that there is exactly one, de facto, inter-operable, 
version 1, SLE services and protocols standard.  Moreover, I believe I can 
identify a very specific set of documents (down to the specific version of 
each document) that, taken together, constitute a complete and accurate 
specification of what I am calling the de facto version 1 SLE standard.

I am guessing that what the GSFC flight projects really want is to be able 
to inter-operate on the same basis as the implementations I have listed 
above.  If that is the case, then I suggest what they need is the complete 
set of documents that I have in mind.

If that sounds about right to you, then I would be happy to work with you 
and Wolfgang to put that complete set of documents together in one 
place.  (Note that there are a few minor complications with the 
documentation that would have to be addressed to complete the task, but 
nothing that we shouldn't be able to resolve in relatively short order.)

BTW, the set of documents that I have in mind does not include either the 
RAF or CLTU Issue 1 Blue Books.  It does include versions of the RAF and 
CLTU books, but the exact versions of those books that correspond to the de 
facto version 1 SLE standard are not the published Blue Books.

This whole situation is, of course, somewhat unsatisfactory (though, as 
things developed, I think it was the unavoidable price we paid in order to 
get SLE off the ground at all).  There is a plan in work to get to a point 
where the de facto standard and the official, published Recommendations are 
fully consistent.  That plan is based on publishing Issue 2 Blue Books and 
moving to a version 2 SLE standard.  The differences between the de facto 
version 1 standard and the de jure / de factor version 2 standard should be 
very minor, but there seems to be a consensus that those minor enhancements 
are in the best interest of SLE in the long run.  Once the version 2 
standard is fully documented and implemented, I believe both JPL and ESA 
would intend to de-commit support for the version 1 standard after a 
suitable transition period.  In the spirit of full disclosure, those 
considerations should be explained to the GSFC flight projects.

Just my two cents worth.  Please let me know how you would like to proceed.

--Regards,
   Michael

At 10:37 AM 11/4/2003 -0500, John Pietras wrote:
>Members of the DTSWG:
>I have had several inquiries from GSFC flight projects about the SLE
>API. Part of what they ask for is documentation. I have versions of the
>Anite documentation and past draft White Books, but I am not certain
>whether these constitute the latest information. Please consider putting
>the latest and/or most accurate API documentation in the private part of
>the DTSWG docushare archive, so that those of us who need to reference
>it can access the most "blessed" version.
>
>In the short term, can someone give me a suggestion for which documents
>I should provide (or point to) when asked?
>
>Thanks.
>
>Best regards,
>John
>
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