John K. Hinsdale

Work Experience: Content Directions, Inc.

PROJECT: PROTOTYPE DOCUMENT REGISTRY

As part of the standardization process, CDI operates a content registry, similar to the domain name registry used for Web sites, that maps these permanent content identifiers to their current locations on the Internet. My work was to help design and program the first prototype version of this registory. A key part of the system was its use of the Java-based "Handle System" developed at the Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), who were major developers of the infrastructure of the Internet itself during the 1970's and 1980's.

PROTOTYPE DOCUMENT REGISTRY: Project Summary Timeline: 2001 Technologies: Java, Oracle, Apache, Tomcat/Servlets, Sun/Solaris, CVS Contribution: Data modelling of content "metadata", implementation of Handle Server, demonstration programs. Innovations: This prototype was the first software to combine the use of advanced capabilities of the Handle architecture (e.g., "multiple resolution") with a traditional database (in Oracle). As such it had both the functions of a resolver (via the Handle part) as as well as a query-capable repository (via Oracle). Lessons learned: As a standardization effort, the biggest hurdle was getting the publishing industry to adopt it. Therefore we focussed on interoperability with different systems (using HTTP) and a very simple interface.