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<DIV dir=ltr><BR>I think any discussion of how to evangelize OpenID to the general <BR>public also requires the foundation to clearly articulate the value of <BR>being a relying party, otherwise we risk stalled growth when users <BR>finally decide to get an OpenID, but have nowhere to use it. JanRain <BR>claims 8,000 relying parties, but I've seen little justification for <BR>that number; OpenIDDirectory.com lists about 530 or so OpenID-related <BR>sites, and 60 or so of them are identity providers. Demonstrating <BR>value to potential relaying parties also requires showing, in no <BR>uncertain terms, just how many people already use it.<BR><BR></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr>I'll leave aside the risk/trust issues germane to any commercial RP's decision to accept a UCI openid.</DIV>
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<DIV dir=ltr>For now, its simply fact - having checked them myself since getting an OP up and running - that</DIV>
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<DIV dir=ltr>1. the openid directory is mostly full of rubbish</DIV>
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<DIV dir=ltr>2. high-grade technical OP-RP-OP inteworking with even the best (commercial grade) spokes is hard. Things work one day, not the next; RPs work with one high-grade OP, but not the next.</DIV></BLOCKQUOTE>
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<DIV dir=ltr>Ill add 3 opinions (subject to challenge)</DIV>
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<DIV dir=ltr>a. if the browser has a form-filling plugin, the user experience is reasonable. At the same time, the my form filler is sending also an RSA OTP value computed on the fly and sent directly to the SP by the form filler, allowing the SP to choose between the RSA GOID and the openid websso protocol. The RSA has an advantage - in that the OTP scheme also does server auth. So, we have to be careful. Form filling is really not the answer: it just induces plugin proliferation.</DIV>
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<DIV dir=ltr>b. Openids are where LiveJournal's FOAF files are. There are millions and millions and millions of them, all essentially UNused.</DIV>
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<DIV dir=ltr>c the stats quoted by our various evangelists are getting us into corporate trouble, as they are undermining confidence in the validity of claims.</DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>