As part of the 17-18 March 1997 DCE Program Group meeting in Seattle, the DCE objects working group met on the afternoon of 17 March.
Kevin Tyson (Enterprise Engineering Assoc), DCE/CORBA Interworking RFP
This RFP is available at ftp://ftp.omg.org/pub/docs/orbos/97-02-03.pdf (172KB) and ftp://ftp.omg.org/pub/docs/orbos/97-02-03.ps (723KB).
CORBA/DCE Interworking RFP (which Kevin co-authored) was approved by OMG at their Austin meeting last week. Kevin told us about RM ODP as a way to describe systems using viewpoints, including: an info viewpoint (w/static, invariant, and dynamic schemas), a computational viewpoint (protocols, signatures), an engineering viewpoint (streams, interrogation), and a technology viewpoint (testable statements). In RM ODP, reference statements define behavior while conformance points describe what is testable. "Realities of the software market: Why do we buy things? Subjective margin of utility. Speed of technology adoption? Slow, real slow." The lesson of the first point is that technology that costs money has to deliver more value than other investments our company could make with that money. The CORBA/DCE RFP involves (in roughly priority order) DCE services under CORBA, CORBA clients calling DCE servers, DCE clients calling CORBA servers, multiple suppliers; global support; federated administration. IBM may answer at least part of the RFP; Iona may also address it. IIOP is mandated by OMG for ORB-to-ORB interactions.
Anne Aldous (IBM), CORBA/DCE Interoperability PST
IBM may propose a CORBA/DCE Interoperability PST to TOG. They have have already begun work; IBM believes it could be productized this year. The proposal supports GSS or CORBA creds in a token encapsulated over IIOP (not the use of secure IIOP, which isn't defined yet). CORBA credentials are defined, and an attendee related that CORBA has an authorization model (not sure whether it includes the group definitions inherent in DCE credentials).
Andrew Condon (IONA), DCE and CORBA: Componentisation and cannibalism
Instead of delivering a safe, politically correct message about Orbix and DCE, Andrew gave a partisan, pro-CORBA speech in which he made a series of controversial statements (many of which were challenged by the attendees). It was a good exchange of ideas and arguments. Andrew contrasted DCE's "pave the world approach ... but wait 'til we finish" with CORBA's "dirt roads (but open for traffic)"; he argued that DCE is complex, but CORBA is easy. He claimed that DCE is decomposable--that it can (and will) be sold piecemeal as CORBA services; also, that Iona wants to prevent DCE's spread. "CORBA is to DCE as TCP/IP was to ISO". He quoted Larry Wall on a whimsical metric of "manuplexity vs whip-it-upitude", arguing that CORBA has the latter. He ended by describing Iona as "cannibalizing" DCE: "Key component technologies of DCE will be reborn as CORBA offerings. This has already begun: OrbixOTS (out now), OrbixSecurity (coming soon)."
Tom Sanfilippo (TOG Research Institiute), Java and DCE Integration Advanced Technology Offering
Described the Java and DCE (JADE) project at RI, whose goals are: DCE clients written in Java; Java access to DCE runtime through native method classes; compatibility with existing DCE servers; a minimal object model; portions of the DCE runtime in pure Java; Java-based DCE servers as a follow-on. Deliverables for this year include DCE IDL to Java mappings, DCE 1.2.2 IDL to Java stub compiler, and marshalling implementation classes. RI is starting from Chisholm DCE++ based Java classes. The project will support DASCOM NetSeat, Gradient PC-DCE/32, JDK 1.1; IDL-to-Java will run on NT. Project started 2/97, DCE IDL to Java and demo 4/97, IDL-to-Java compiler and marshalling classes 7/97, initial Java DCE runtime 10/97, complete 1/98. Sponsors are Digital, DASCOM, Chisholm, and CIC (Big Ten + Univ Chicago).
Discussion on ActiveX Core Technologies/DCE (ACD) Project
Dick Mackey of TOG fielded questions on the ACD project.
Discussion on working group charter (see DCE Objects Task Group Charter)
We did not have this discussion due to the amount of material that was presented; if you have comments on the charter, please send them to me.
Dave Skeen
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