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Re: The Emperor Has No Clothes: Is PANA actually useful?

2006-05-26 08:35:29


Joel M. Halpern wrote:
EAP over IP (or UDP, or link) is about authenticating the user. If a media independent technique better than just using a browser is needed, then solve that problem. Personally, I would find the work far more persuasive if it did not also try to solve the problem of creating an IPSec association to the access device, nor of the authorization selection problem.

And spell out in clear English what use case needs that problem solved. I can read between the lines and start to guess. But the document is quite unclear. The appendix about DSL is not helpful in that regard.


Although not a guaranteed way to distinguish among criticisms, it can be helpful to categorize them as either "It will not work" versus "I don't like it". The former indicates a basic technical flaw, and the latter a matter of preference.

If it is common for readers of a specification to fail to understand what it is for then it has, perhaps, the most basic kind of technical flaw. How can a specification succeed if there is confusion about its implementation or use?

By contrast observations such as "there are better solutions" moves into the fuzzier and more subjective realm of trying to predict market preferences. The IETF is not very good at making these predictions. Absent any indication of actual harm that would ensue from publishing a specification, fear that no one will adopt it or that there will be multiple solutions seems an inappropriate basis for denying publication. (On the other hand, strong indication of community interest in deplying a specification is supposed to be a factor in deciding whether to charter the work in the first place; however as Sam noted, we are rather late in the process.)

In any event, I would claim that concerns over who will use PANA fall into the "I don't like it" category, since it basically seeks to make statements about market preferences, which is a small step from personal preferences.

Having looked over this thread and the -framework document a bit, I find myself unclear which of the two lines of concern is being pursued, although I impressed by the degree of confusion about PANA after what appears to be considerable effort to understand it. This does not bode well for community understanding, and that of course does not bode well for adoption and use.

I would find it particularly helpful to have a concise statement from someone who says that PANA will not work. Cannot be implemented (properly) by virtue of technical errors or documentation too confusing to understand. Or cannot be deployed and used, by virtue of administrative complexity or, again, documentation too confusing to understand.

Absent this, I will ask why it is productive to note that the emperor is pursuing an idiosynchratic sartorial style?

d/

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