burton@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Philip Burton) (08/27/90)
Are the NIST Stable Implementators's Agreements (SIA) stable enough? I am the product line manager for data comm for Unisys' Distributed Systems Division, (CTOS/BTOS) and we are trying to come to grips with this issue: Now that August 15, 1990 has come and gone, what does GOSIP I really mean? Is Version 1, Edition 1 of the SIA what implementors should have built, or was it Version 1 Edition 4 or Version 3 Edition <latest>? Unisys is concerned about what edition of the SIA is being specified by GOSIP. We can release a product only so frequently. It is possible to make maintenance/support/update/patch releases quarterly, but is the effort either justifiable or necessary? The impact on the customer base is great, and there is significant expense associated with each upgrade. We were under the impression that NIST would produce one (exactly one) stable implementors' agreement and that implementors would build to that set of agreements. It is understandable that in the beginning there was a need for some errata, but we are concerned about the proposed wording being placed into GOSIP version 1, which would make compliance to GOSIP 1 a "moving target." The reference to the SIA in GOSIP 1 (FIPS 146) is to versiion 1, without reference to a specific edition. NIST proposes modifying FIPS 146 to reference "NIST Special Publication 500-177, Stable Implementation Agreements for Open Systems Interconnection Protocols, Version 3." (Version 3 is the latest edition available from the Government Printing Office.) Do you share our concerns, or believe that there is no cause for concern? Phil Burton Unisys Corporation (408) 435 3791 burton@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Internet) PMB1/NGen-mktg (Unisys internal mail system)