In the telecon yesterday I mentioned the work being undertaken by the PIP
BOF to look at standardizing Instant Messaging or the general ICQ concept.
The charter is also interesting for its desire to standardize "presence" on
the net... which could include devices as well, I assume.
###################
Instant Messaging and Presence Working Group Charter
DRAFT - Revision 7 - 10/29/1998
WG Chairs:
Vijay Saraswat <vj at research.att.com>
Dave Marvit <dave at marvit.org>
Applications Area Directors:
Keith Moore <moore at cs.utk.edu>
Patrik Faltstrom <paf at swip.net>
Applications Area Adviser:
Patrik Faltstrom <paf at swip.net>
Mailing-list:
<pip at iastate.edu>
(Send subscription requests to pip-request at iastate.edu)
Archives are available at http://lists.fsck.com/cgi-bin/wilma/pip
Description:
This working group will define protocols and data formats necessary to
build an internet-scale end-user presence awareness, notification and
instant messaging system.
Background:
Instant messaging differs from email primarily in that its primary
focus is immediate end-user delivery.
Presence information was readily accessible on internet-connected systems
years ago; when a user had an open session to a well-known multi-user
system, his friends and colleagues could easily tell where he was
connected from and whether he was using his computer. Since that time,
computing infrastructure has become increasingly distributed and a given
user may be consistently "available," but has no standard way to make this
information known to her peers. This working group will design a system to
address this need.
Goals:
The working group will develop base protocol(s) for simple instant
messaging and presence awareness/notification. It will specify optional
extensions for authentication, message integrity and privacy. It is
desirable, but not required, for the working group to develop a solution
that works well for awareness of and communication with entities other
than human users.
Non-goals:
Providing a general notification mechanism for data other than user
presence information and instant messages.
The following are in scope for the working group:
PRESENCE
--------
* A format for encoding presence information.
Different entities may want to provide different presence information.
The working group will specify a minimal set of attributes, such as the
entity's name and availability, which all compliant implementations must
support. The working group will also define a mechanism for extending
this presence information and a set of common extensions.
* A protocol for fetching, publishing, subscribing to, and receiving
notifications of changes in presence information.
An entity will be able to look up a particular entity's presence
information, or to indicate that it wants to receive notifications of
changes to that information. An entity must be capable of sending
notifications to interested remote entities when its presence
information changes.
INSTANT MESSAGING
-----------------
* A format for encoding instant messages.
This working group should reuse existing systems for encoding message
meta-data and content, but may need to specify new schema and/or types of
content.
* A protocol for sending and receiving instant messages.
Instant messages will be targeted (not broadcast) and delivered to an
entity that indicates that it is currently available to receive those
messages.
SHARED
------
* Entity Namespace
This working group will define the instant messaging / presence entity
namespace and naming conventions; these must support distributed name-
space management.
* Authentication, Message Integrity and Privacy
While developing new authentication and message privacy technology is
not in scope for the working group, the proper application of existing
technologies in these areas and techniques for negotiating and
communicating this information, once obtained, are in scope.
* Access Control
An access control mechanism determines which entities can and can't
retrieve presence information and/or send instant messages. The
working group will investigate access control schemes and will either
define how an existing access-control mechanism will be used for
presence and instant messaging, or will specify a new mechanism.
* Scalability
An internet-scale deployment of instant messaging and presence systems
might involve thousands to millions of independently-administered
domains, some of which might contain thousands of user-agents. Any given
user-agent would likely have only a few active subscriptions. However,
some subscribed-to entities might well be the subject of thousands or
millions of active subscriptions. To minimize bandwidth use, the working
group may investigate techniques such as the incremental update of
presence data, re-using existing solutions as appropriate.
The following are not in scope for the working group:
* Providing a transport for streaming media.
* Invention of new authentication and encryption techniques. (However,
the specification of which current authentication and encryption
techniques, if any, are appropriate for the Working Group and how
exactly how they are used is IN scope.)
Deliverables:
The working group plans to deliver the following documents but may,
in consultation with the Area Directors, deliver an alternate set
of documents:
Requirements for Instant Messaging and Presence (internet-draft)
Presence and Instant Messaging Event Notification Transport
Protocol (PIMENT) (Standards Track)
This document will specify a base wire protocol to be used
as a substrate for instant messaging and presence. This will
include entity-naming conventions and transport options.
Instant Messaging Protocol (IMP) (Standards Track)
This document will define the proper semantics and formats
for using PIMENT as a substrate for instant messaging.
Presence Information Protocol (PIP) (Standards Track)
This document will define the proper semantics and formats
for using PIMENT as substrate for presence awareness and
notification.
Presence Information Protocol Schema (Standards Track)
This document will define schema, markup and extension methods
for describing presence information.
PIMENT Authentication, Message Privacy and Access Control
(Standards Track)
This document will specify standard user authentication
mechanisms, message authentication and privacy mechanisms
and access control mechanisms for PIMENT.
Goals and Milestones:
Dec-1998 Submit Draft of Requirements for Instant Messaging
and Presence Information
Mar-1999 Submit Draft of Event Notification Transport Protocol
(PIMENT)
Mar-1999 Submit Draft of PIMENT Authentication, Message Privacy
and Access Control
Apr-1999 Submit Draft of Instant Messaging Protocol (IMP)
Apr-1999 Submit Draft of Presence Information Protocol (PIP)
Apr-1999 Submit Draft of PIP Schema
May-1999 Submit Revised Draft of Event Notification Transport
Protocol (PIMENT)
May-1999 Submit Revised Draft of PIMENT Authentication,
Message Privacy and Access Control
Jul-1999 Submit Requirements for Instant Messaging and Presence
Information to IESG for consideration as an
Informational RFC
Jul-1999 Submit Revised Draft of Instant Messaging Protocol (IMP)
Jul-1999 Submit Revised Draft of Presence Information Protocol (PIP)
Jul-1999 Submit Revised Draft of PIP Schema
Oct-1999 Submit Event Notification Transport Protocol (PIMENT)
to IESG for consideration as a Proposed Standard
Oct-1999 Submit Instant Messaging Protocol (IMP)
to IESG for consideration as Proposed Standard
Oct-1999 Submit Presence Information Protocol (PIP)
to IESG for consideration as Proposed Standard
Oct-1999 Submit PIP Schema to IESG for consideration as Proposed
Standard
Oct-1999 Submit PIMENT Authentication, Message Privacy and Access
Control to IESG for consideration as Proposed Standard
--
Jesse Vincent -- jvincent at microsoft.com -- 425 705-2579
:wq
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