[Cesg-all] RE: [Sois-tcoa] Re: Status of SOIS?

[Adrian J. Hooke]

At 03:33 AM 6/15/2005, Steve Parkes wrote:
>  We have at last a consistent architecture that meets, we believe, the 
> broader needs of SIS and the needs of spacecraft software and hardware 
> engineers. Currently we are in the process of writing this up in the form 
> of a white paper for broader review. As I am sure you can understand we 
> want to make sure that the TCONS/OBL working group agree on this document 
> before we send it out for any further review.

Steve: the TCONS mailing list (which is where that particular white paper 
is being discussed) only contains 15 people, most of them the "usual 
suspects". Is that the entire world gene pool of interest in TCONS?

The OBL mailing list has had a total of three messages on it since November 
2003.

I don't understand the need for such secrecy or lack of communication. Th 
OBL, TCONS and TCOA work should be visible to the world.

>We will then welcome comments and take into consideration any necessary 
>modification of the TCONS/OBL architecture. At the same time we are 
>working on the Service Interface Specification Red Books and expect to 
>have drafts for internal review soon.

How can you possibly be working on Red Books without having mature White 
Books out on the public website for community comment? If you go to your 
CWE site at http://public.ccsds.org/sites/cwe/sois-tcons/Documents.aspx 
there is absolutely nothing loaded in the public area. Nothing.

If you then log-in to the TCONS CWE at that page (which people from the 
outside can't do) there is a 3-page White Paper from Max and a 2-slide 
viewgraph from Jane. I don't see anything even vaguely resembling a mature 
White Book (let alone a draft Red Book) under development within your 
group. Where is it?

>  Could you please let me know the formal review procedures for CCSDS 
> documents. We want to have them reviewed by SIS and possibly other groups 
> that you recommend before sending them out for interagency review. Is 
> this normal? If not how would you suggest that we proceed? I would very 
> much welcome an idiot's guide to CCSDS review procedures as everyone that 
> I have asked seems to have a different perspective.

See section 6 of the 
<http://public.ccsds.org/publications/archive/A00x0y9.pdf>CCSDS A00.0-Y-9 
(Procedures Manual for the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems. 
Yellow Book. Issue 9. November 2003: this document is currently being 
updated to add a graphical roadmap to the various review loops).  If you 
have any questions about process, your Area Director should be able to 
answer them.

>    * The CCSDS logos etc have changed and we have had some problems with 
> the template documents that we have been using in the past. Is there a 
> new CCSDS white, green and red book template available? If so could you 
> please let me know where I can get them from?
You should be working with the CCSDS Document Editor (Tom Gannett) on all 
documentation issues, right from the start of White Book development. Tom 
will give you all of the logos and templates.

>    * Could you please arrange a joint SOIS / SIS meeting for the next 
> CCSDS meeting so that we can present our architecture and the work done. 
> I would be happy to present this to a wider CCSDS audience I you felt 
> that it would be useful.
Work this with Patrick or Chris, who can then arrange the agenda with Bob 
Durst.


>I can assure you that the TCONS and OBL teams are fully committed to 
>completing their SOIS work as soon as possible. Most importantly we are 
>committed to making sure that the recommendations that we produce are 
>worthy of CCSDS and will be used by future space missions.

As I said in my original message to Patrick and Chris, I am not attacking 
the work of TCONS and OBL, I am simply voicing my very strong concern that 
virtually ALL of the SOIS work is completely hidden from anyone except a 
"secret decoder ring club" of SOIS inner-circle people. It is constantly 
embarrassing to have people from industry or other agencies express strong 
interest in the work of SOIS, and yet when they ask for documents to look 
at there is absolutely NOTHING to point them to. Open international 
standards development is not a stealth activity; if in doubt, err on the 
side of full public visibility.

Best regards
Adrian

Adrian J. Hooke
Chairman, CCSDS Engineering Steering Group (CESG)
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