Publication Process: v6.0 artifacts

[cabralje]

Comment from Scott Renner:

"NIEMOpen Version 6.0" should refer to a collection of specifications: one model specification plus several technical specifications. I envision a page posted somewhere looking like this, describing and providing links to the specifications in each version (illustrative only, not intended to be complete):

NIEM Version 6.0 is comprised of the following specifications:

NIEM Model 6.0 - Yada yada yada somebody else write this

Code Lists Specification 4.0 - This document establishes methods for using code list artifacts with NIEM information exchange specifications. It provides for the use of Genericode documents, as well as for CSV code lists. It supports the use of code lists at schema definition time, via annotations for XML Schema documents that bind schema components to code lists. It supports the use of code lists at run time, via XML Schema components for use in XML documents that bind XML data to code lists. It also includes identifiers for well-known columns that have semantics needed across the NIEM community.

Conformance Targets Attribute Specification 3.0 - This document specifies an XML attribute that may occur within XML documents to establish a claim that the document conforms to a set of conformance targets. This specification does not define what the conformance targets are; the conformance targets are established by other specifications. Each conformance target is identified by an internationalized resource identifier, which is defined by its relevant specification.

Conformance Specification 6.0 - This document specifies general conformance guidance, principles, and rules for the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) version 5.0.

Message Specifications 6.0 - This document provides guidance for constructing a NIEM message specification.

Naming and Design Rules for XML 6.0 - This document specifies the data model, XML Schema components, and XML data for use with the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM) version 5.0.

[cabralje]

Comments from Scott Renner:

I believe NIEM version 6.0 will be comprised of the following specifications:

1. NIEM Model 6.0
2. Code Lists Specification
3. Common Model Format Specification
4. Conformance Specification
5. Conformance Targets Attribute Specification
6. Message Specifications in NIEM
7. Naming and Design Rules for XML

All of these, I believe, are suitable Project Specifications and eventual OASIS Standards. Perhaps ISO if the juice is worth the squeeze.

2-7 are the sole responsibility of the NTAC. The content of 1 belongs to the NBAC; the NTAC has a role in the representation of that content.

The current version of 2-7 can be found at http://reference.niem.gov/niem/specification/. 6 is currently named "model package description" and is slated for a complete rewrite – first as developer guidance, then (I believe) as a formal specification.

I don't believe the domain update, high-level tool architecture, high-level version architecture, schematron-in-xsd, uml-profile, and web-services-api specifications will be part of NIEM version 6.0. I don't know what we will do with the JSON specification.

[cabralje]

Comments from Duncan Sparrell:

I think it would be very useful if this document either had in it, or referred to a different document that had in it, the best guess actual list of the artifacts proposed to be in NIEM 6. For example, as someone not steeped in NIEM history, I presumed 6.0 would have an arch doc since all previous versions of NIEM (eg http://niem.github.io/niem-releases/5.2/) had https://reference.niem.gov/niem/specification/high-level-version-architecture/3.0/high-level-version-architecture-3.0.html in it. Conversation at NTAC said this is not the case – that particular document is not scheduled to be updated or included in NIEM 6. It would be very useful to list the standards track artifacts (which I think are the model and new versions of 6 of the 7 specs in 5.2). It would also be very useful to list the software that is intended to be in NIEM 6. I can not do a first-guess list because the software (I think) exists in several places including private repos to which I have no access.

[cabralje]

An authoritative list of the artifacts in NIEM 6 would be very useful for communications as well as planning purposes. The Publication Process lists the above as example specifications but I'm not sure the authoritative list belongs in this document. I probably prefer making it a separate project note. This deserves more discussion by the NTAC, NBAC and NMO.

[cabralje]

At the 2023-02-21 NTAC meeting, we agreed to recommend that the artifacts in each version of NIEM be listed separately from the Publication Process document. The NTAC and NBAC Maintainers, Tom and Christina, will compile an initial list of artifacts in NIEM 6.0