RE: [unrev-II] Jack's Use Case: Context-sensitive representation

From: Gil Regev (gil.regev@epfl.ch)
Date: Fri Nov 03 2000 - 01:09:55 PST

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    You can also get the pdf file of the topic maps standard at:
    http://www.y12.doe.gov/sgml/sc34/document/0129.pdf which is bound to open
    with Netscape and that has all the information about roles and associations
    but probably in less readable form.

    Gil

     -----Original Message-----
    From: Eric Armstrong [mailto:eric.armstrong@eng.sun.com]
    Sent: vendredi, 3. novembre 2000 01:56
    To: unrev-II@egroups.com
    Subject: Re: [unrev-II] Jack's Use Case: Context-sensitive representation

      Apparently this site can only be viewed in Explorer?
      It sure isn't displaying well in Netscape 4.7.

      "Regev, Gil" wrote:
    >
    > Eric,
    >
    > check out the Topic Maps trail at http://www.topicmaps.com/ I believe
    > they have defined roles of associations the same way as you do in this
    > message. The trail starts at
    >
    http://www.topicmaps.com/machinery/intermediary.asp?file=../content/trails/r
    esolved\step1.xml they
    > start discussing roles of associations at step 7. You can find the ISO
    > standard at http://www.y12.doe.gov/sgml/sc34/document/0129.pdf
    >
    > Gil
    >
    >
    > -----Original Message-----
    > From: Eric Armstrong [mailto:eric.armstrong@eng.sun.com]
    > Sent: jeudi, 2. novembre 2000 00:54
    > To: unrev-II@egroups.com
    > Subject: Re: [unrev-II] Jack's Use Case: Context-sensitive
    > representation
    >
    > Thanks again for raising this critical question,
    > Jack. It got the juices flowing, and this morning
    > the answer arrived, as it always does, like a
    > tiny bolt of lightning in the quiet of morning.
    >
    > There is a analagous concept in O-O design: the
    > concept of a *role*. In that context, the idea
    > of a role emerges when one realizes that a particular
    > noun in a system description does not represent a
    > new object, but rather the name of a variable -- a
    > particular way of characterizing an existing object.
    >
    > Thinking in terms of "roles" led me to put your
    > question together with Doug's magnificent
    > tour de force: the concept of a adding
    > *view control* to a link.
    >
    > In essence, the situation with Sally is that there
    > are multiple views. "Sally" can be representated as
    > an object with many views (if she is thought of as
    > a hierarchy or graph of characteristics) or as an
    > object with many interfaces (if she is thought of
    > as a classic O-O object).
    >
    > The important point is that "referencing" the
    > object known as "Sally" always takes place in
    > some *context*, and in that context, one view
    > or another is appropriate. That "view" of her
    > characterisitcs constitutes the "role she plays".
    >
    > [Intentional ambiguity alert: You "play a role"
    > when you are on stage, in the sense that it is one
    > view of who you are. You also "play a role" in
    > any given context, in the sense that you fulfill
    > some specific set of functions.]
    >
    > The moral, then, is that any link to any object
    > in the system must be qualifiable with respect
    > to it's "role", in the same way that any link
    > to any part of hierarchy must be qualifiable
    > with respect to view.
    >
    > For me, the moral is that any reference to a
    > globally unique user ID must also be qualifiable
    > with respect to a "role" or "view" of that
    > user.
    >
    > The reason: User IDs are used for attribution.
    > Every attribution should become a link to
    > information about that individual.
    >
    > But the information displayed for that individual
    > should depend on the context. The "bio" paragraph
    > I use for technical articles is significantly
    > different from the one I use for exercise/nutrition
    > articles. In the same way, the view of "me"
    > presented by traversing a user ID link should be
    > different, depending on the context from which it
    > came.
    >
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