.Dir coming to a domain near you
A few weeks ago, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) closed the period for requesting new global top level domains (gTLD). ICANN was hoping to add to the current gTLDs of .com, .edu, .org, . net, .gov, and .mil. It's still not known how many (or even if any) new gTLDs will be named, but an interesting one for those of us in the network business was .dir.
Novell proposed .dir as a new, restricted domain - restricted in that it would only be available as an add-on to an existing domain. So Microsoft.com could get Microsoft.com.dir, but there couldn't be a Microsoft.dir.
Novell thinks the .dir entry in the domain name service would point to a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) interface for a directory service. At a minimum, this directory service would have to satisfy the requirements of the "LDAP 2000" branding specification as defined by the Open Group's Directory Interoperability Forum (DIF). This would change over time, but be under the auspices of DIF.
In the short run, this means you could point an LDAP query at domainname.dir and expect that, for many companies, the correct directory information would be returned. In the long run, though - using tools similar to Novell's federated trees and personal directory services - an individual could associate his digital persona with that of the domain pointed to at domainname.dir. So too, an entire corporate network could affiliate its directory with that at the pointed to domain, quickly and automatically. Surprisingly, you wouldn't need to be running Novell's eDirectory to participate, although that would make everything easier to accomplish.
Initial reaction from other directory vendors was inconclusive, but generally said, "I wish I'd thought of that!" Since then, a number of positive comments have been noted and can be viewed at www.icann.org/mbx/tldapps.
The possibilities that the .dir designation can open corporate, business-to-business and even business-to-consumer computing are breathtaking, once you consider them. For example, roles could be created that are automatically filled by users who attach and self-provision their accounts (for instance, insured people accessing an insurance company site using a policy number in conjunction with a name or social security number).
Please join me in urging ICANN to create this gTLD.
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Dave Kearns is a writer and consultant in Silicon Valley. His most recent book is "Peter Norton's Complete Guide to Networks" published by SAMS. Dave's company, Virtual Quill, provides content services to network vendors: books, manuals, white papers, lectures and seminars, marketing, technical marketing and support documents. Virtual Quill provides "words to sell by..." Find out more at www.vquill.com/ or by e-mail at info@vquill.com
