Re: on the value of "running code" (was Re: Do you want to have more meetings outside US ?)

[Dave Crocker <dhc2 at dcrocker.net>]

David Conrad wrote:
> I'd offer that the OSI protocol stack was probably significantly more 
> reviewed than the TCP/IP stack.

Depends what you mean by "more reviewed".

More eyes looking at the specs?  Probably yes.  More critical analysis by 
senior technical architects?  Probably not.


> At the very least, running code is an empirical proof that an
> architecture _can_ work.

Again, depends upon what one means by running code.

Certainly there were early prototypes of OSI modules, and even running 
products.  Clearly, that was not enough.  In contrast, the Internet code was 
deployed and used in a running service, with increasing scale.  So the 
distinction between prototype and production is probably of fundamental 
importance.  (I think that Dave Clark really meant "running service" when he 
said "running code".)

d/

--

  Dave Crocker
  Brandenburg InternetWorking
  bbiw.net

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