Re: Call for volunteers for C/C++ API liaison manager

On May 1, 2014:12:49 PM, at 12:49 PM, Joe Touch <touch(_at_)isi(_dot_)edu> 
wrote:

> On 5/1/2014 8:26 AM, Thomas Nadeau wrote:
> > On May 1, 2014:11:02 AM, at 11:02 AM, Joe Touch <touch(_at_)isi(_dot_)edu> 
> > wrote:
> >
> > > On 5/1/2014 5:12 AM, Thomas Nadeau wrote:
> > > >    APIs are not that useful unless there is code behind them.
> > > Ultimately, yes. But the code represents an instance of the API.
> > That depends on your perspective. These days the code IS the API, in
> > particular open source code. Standards bodies do not need to define the
> > APIs; implementation communities do that already. The IETF should
> > probably stick to on-the-wire protocols.
> A protocol is defined by:
>
>       - internal state
>       - message "on the wire" formats
>       - upper layer events
>       - lower layer events (message arrivals/departures)
>       - time events
>
> Leave any of the 6 above out and you have an incomplete spec.
>
> The "on the wire" part is only a fraction of what's needed. If you don't 
> believe that, then write a TCP implementation from the header format alone, 
> and let's see how well it works.
        Why do any of those things need a standards-based API to program to?

        --Tom

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