OMG Technology Adoption Process
Part IV: Finalization - Getting Ready for Prime Time
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Since it's adopted technology now, why no release number yet?
In late 1998, OMG changed the way it names new specification
releases to recognize something that insiders had known all along:
The first version of an adopted specification typically contains
more little inconsistencies and buggies than later versions, and
receives so many minor modifications during its first maintenance
revision that implementations need to be modified to keep up. In
spite of this, until 1998 the OMG had given every newly adopted
specification a release number and regarded them as the equal of
specifications that had been through maintenance and had working
compliant implementations.
In recognition, the group created the label Adopted
Specification for newly-adopted stuff, and Available
Specification for stuff that's been through its first
maintenance revision. And, a specification has to reach the
Available stage to receive a release number. That's the job of the
Finalization Task Force or
FTF, which we discuss here:
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What's the difference between an FTF and an RTF?
The TF that performs the first maintenance revision on a newly
adopted specification has the
special name Finalization Task Force or FTF, in recognition of the
difference between the first maintenance revision and those that
follow which, by the way, are performed by Revision Task Forces or
RTFs and discussed on our next page.
FTF members typically include all of the submitters; interested
other companies may be included as well. The FTF is chartered by
the TC that recommended the specification for adoption. Unlike
regular TFs at OMG, voting membership in RTFs and FTFs is
restricted to members assigned to it by the TC, mostly at time of
charter although members may be added and dropped during its
tenure. Even though you have to be an official member to vote in
an FTF or RTF, their meetings and email lists are open to all OMG
members.
Submitters whose Business Committee Questionnaires were deemed acceptable by the
BSC play a special role on the FTF: During the FTF's existence,
these companies are working on their implementations (back at
their companies, since OMG doesn't do implementations) while they
are serving on the FTF. Because they're implementing the spec, they're an
authoritative source of issues that the FTF needs to fix, so their
participation is especially valuable. And, because they have
accepted an obligation to implement the final version of the
specification, they have veto power over any changes that
the FTF might want to make. Veto power is necessary for this part
of the process to work; if it didn't exist, the other members of
an FTF could (in principle) force a company to implement something
it didn't want to, or couldn't afford to, or couldn't justify
based on business reasons, just by voting it in, and this possibility
would prevent companies from accepting the obligation to
commercialize the technology in their LOI. In practice, veto power
is used sparingly if at all, since FTFs (and RTFs) work in the
same spirit of consensus-building that infuses the other phases of
OMG work.
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What does an FTF do?
The FTF deals with all issues that come into OMG regarding the
specification that it is responsible for, starting when the
specification is newly issued and continuing until a deadline set
by the membership. Typically this deadline allows time for
involved companies to complete, or nearly complete, their initial
implementations. OMG maintains a web page
where anyone, whether from an OMG member company or not, may
submit issues. Many groups - companies, universities, and
individuals - download recently adopted specifications and
implement them. If you're implementing an OMG specification and
you find something wrong, inconsistent, or ambiguous in it, submit
an issue! This improves the specifications for everyone.
You can find and follow the work of all of OMG's FTFs on the
Work in Progress page by searching for FTF, and RTFs by searching
for RTF. You can also see the list of companies with veto power
for a revision by going to the Recently Adopted Specifications
page, clicking on the specification area that you're interested
in, and on the table that comes up, clicking on "more"
in the left-hand column or just scrolling down the page.
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What happens when the FTF completes?
The FTF is a Task Force and, like every other OMG TF, it
recommends technology to its parent TC for adoption. In this case,
the technology is the revised version of the specification that it
was chartered to fix up. This is a document which, like all
candidate specifications, goes through the usual series of
votes:
Following the FTF vote to recommend, it must be approved by the
AB, recommended to the BOD by the TC, and formally adopted by the
BOD.
Following a positive BOD vote, the document becomes official
OMG Available Technology. It is put, immediately but
temporarily, onto the Recently Adopted Specifications page and
takes its place on the queueue of OMG's crack editing staff who
beat it into shape to take its place alongside the group's other
Formal Specifications. Typically, Available Specifications from
OMG and implementations from vendors (including those who LOI'd)
become available around the same time.
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Last updated on
05/21/2012 |
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