Hi Jeroen/All; Comments inline: On 9/27/11 5:03 PM, thus spake Jeroen van der Ham:
Hello,
My final 2 cents on the debate:
The issue was raised in two separate projects which are looking to adopt NML for infrastructure description. These projects aim to have users as active writers of topology descriptions, not just passive consumers of measured data. The confusion is that these users are more accustomed to the use of "port" in the context of a UDP or TCP port, not as a network attachment point.
As I have noted in prior exchanges in email and in person OGF - I don't see this as a compelling reason for us to run out and change our established terminology. What happens when another group approaches you at an event in another 2 years to call the concept 'port', will we have yet another discussion on this mailing list to change (again)? I find this entire line of conversation rather unnecessary and counterproductive to this working group. Its a *name*, and if several projects that initially called the concept an 'interface' can get used to 'port' re: Martin's earlier history laden email, I don't see why these new groups cannot do the same. It is ok to tell people 'no' occasionally, especially when there is a destructive nature to the overall choice that will force work on many established partners.
The concept of a UDP or TCP port would actually probably translate to a Label and not a Port/Interface if we would use it in a network description.
Looking at GENI, and especially ProtoGENI as the leading candidate, they seem to go for Interface as well.
This is false. ProtoGENI (something that Martin, the UDel/IU students, as we as Internet2 are heavily involved with) based their early work on NM/NML schematic concepts, mostly from old examples that featured port. It is true its not a one to one mapping, but they are using links and ports just like we are. Other GENI efforts (orca/ben, planetlab) may use interface, I dont know those as well, but these do not represent *all* of GENI. Thanks; -jason
That being said, the world will not end if we choose Port. Those projects will probably use Interface anyway, but just semantically match it to nml:Port if necessary.
Jeroen.