Slots - Current Thinking

Team,

Regarding the discussions we've been having on Slots: This e-mail is a
snapshot of our current thinking. Please provide feedback on where we
should go from here. I know I've been throwing out a lot of stuff to you
all lately, as we start tying some loose ends together. I appreciate
everyone's contributions.

Thanks,
Joe

ISSUE #1: Maximum Length is Restrictive
---------------------------------------

BACKGROUND: 
- The current "values" attribute of the Slot class in ebRIM is of Data
Type "Collection of LongName" (128 characters);

- We discussed the possibility of increasing the length to (perhaps) 256
characters;

DISCUSSIONS:
- We discussed the possibility of lifting the length restriction of Slot
values altogether (this would make "ordering" and "chunking" of Slot
values unnecessary);

- We can consider this approach for other attributes, such as
RegistryObject.description;

CURRENT STATUS:
- Not resolved

ISSUE #2: Order of Slot Values
------------------------------

BACKGROUND: 
- Slot attribute "values" should be changed from Data Type "Collection
of LongName" to Data Type "Ordered Collection of LongName";

- This would allow for "chaining" (chunking) of Slot values together;

DISCUSSIONS:
- This feature may be restrictive;

- However, an ordering capability can be utilized any time one needs to
represent information that would be represented in an array; 

CURRENT STATUS:
- Not resolved

ISSUE #3: Cardinality of Slots
------------------------------

BACKGROUND: 
- The CCTS spec stipulates (for some attributes) Cardinality such as:
	- Mandatory
	- Optional
	- Repetitive
	- etc.

- How can we accommodate this in our registry architecture?

DISCUSSIONS:
- We can add attributes to Slot class to for "minOccurs" and "maxOccurs"
- each attribute would signify the minimum/maximum number of members of
the "values" collection that can exist. 

- For example, a "minOccurs" value of 0 and a "maxOccurs" value of 10
would mean that there can be a minimum of 0 values and a maximum of 10
values in the "values" collection;

CURRENT STATUS:
- Not resolved

ISSUE #4: slotType Attribute Does Not Have Predetermined Values
---------------------------------------------------------------

BACKGROUND: 
- The "slotType" attribute should have predetermined values;

DISCUSSIONS:
- A request was made for suggestions of predetermined values, but no
response was provided;

CURRENT STATUS:
- Not resolved (close to being closed without resolution)