[Mailman-Developers] Login / User Identification Issues in MM3

[Richard Wackerbarth]

On Jul 17, 2012, at 6:38 PM, Barry Warsaw wrote:
> On Jul 13, 2012, at 07:34 PM, Richard Wackerbarth wrote:
>> But, that REST interface is only one implementation of the service interface.
>> The REST particulars are not really a part of the service.
> 
> I see what you're saying, and this 1000ft abstraction of the service may be
> useful in the sense that it's documentation for anyone else wanting to
> implement said service using a different IPC mechanism, but right now where
> the project is, this is a bit too abstract to be meaningful *to me*.  I have
> no problem with this kind of service description being defined before the user
> manager service is implemented, but it still has to be made more concrete one
> level down into an IPC protocol definition before it can be useful.

I think that you are finally beginning to understand the perspective that I am trying to provide.

Yes, to implement anything, we will need the concrete descriptions at the protocol level.
For example, we will need some definition of the services implemented as a RESTful interface.
Also, at least for the message handler, because you have chosen to implement it that way in Python, an object description such as ZCA for the implementation interface will be required.

However, and this is the reason that I object to the bypassing of the service level description, we also need to assure that each of these implementations respect the requirement that ALL inter-service interactions be representable strictly in terms of service-level interfaces. If you define only the implementation interface, then you have no standard upon which to judge adherence to any standard that does not REQUIRE ALL implementations to exactly duplicate all aspects of that particular implementation.

Specifically, one interface may provide multiple implementations which accomplish the same system service. (Many ways to skin the cat) Alternate implementations are required to provide just one of them.