[OpenID] OpenID based decentralized social networking

[Peter Williams]

Can we go through these statements?

1.      “A collaborative space with OpenID login, yes”

Ok. This seems to be a simple claim. A collaboration web-application requires users to logon. The OpenID protocol is the method used. Seems simple enough. Jyte asked MyOpenID to (a) repupose my login session, (b) send I&A claims, (c) send persona details.

2.      “and OpenID server with some social networking stuff, yes.”

But, what does this mean?

Isn’t an “OpenID server” simply (a) an “authentication server” (that happens to use webSSO flows) and (b) an “attribute authority server” (that serves up Registration persona data)?

Or, is there the implied assertion that with “social networking stuff” that group/association functions have been added to the OpenID server, where the design of that is part of the OpenID movement’s work, in controlling and managing “user-centric authorization systems”?

For example, our “association management product” (viable only for realty-related  applications, really, like offer/sale contract, title searches, money transfer & escrow, mortgage brokering, handling inspections, handling building contractors …) is a pun. 

1.       It enables a Realty Association to perform member management, and billing for those subscriptions (whereupon the member then services all the above, for you, interacting with professionals in each area (lawyers, county records, bonded escrow managers, banks, safety consultants, building firms) etc. 

2.       But, it also manages associations (relating a member who has associated with others in groupings known to the member as X, Y and Z) – given  realtor needs GOOD REFERALS to compete for the next home transfer, and thus MUST associate to get the next lead. (Is also done non-standard WebSSO, for about 8 years, too J)

In the same sense that XDi.org (at xri.net) manages local and global name resolution in parallel, the product manages local and global names given by folk to the group(s) implied by one’s choice to associate with others for some purpose. From this, entitlements are managed – and are used to drive’s one’s “user-centric” authorization system.

Now, if social networking-based authorization work has produced community standards in this area (even early phase efforts), I can start trying to design an accommodation – where that association management products  adapts to the standard – so (a) as to interwork with others, (b) provide use case analysis from a business community that thrives on and depends on (secure) social networking (and has for 100 years) (c) support the OpenID initiative.

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