[Standards] XEP-0115 redux

[Rachel Blackman]

>> 8.5 Friendly Name
>>
>> The 'name' attribute of the service discovery <identity/> element  
>> enables a responding application to specify the "friendly name" for  
>> its node. However, this attribute is excluded from the hash  
>> generation method, primarily because it is human-readable text and  
>> therefore may be provided in different localized versions. As a  
>> result, its inclusion would needlessly multiply the number of  
>> possible hash values and thus the time and resources required to  
>> validate values of the 'ver' attribute. However, a receiving  
>> application MAY send a service discovery information request to a  
>> particularly JID+node combination in order to determine the  
>> friendly name, then cache the result for that JID+node only.
>
> Gr.  Having email issues this morning.  This is a reply to Kevin's  
> desire for new text.
>
> <suggestion>
> However, a receiving application MAY send a service discovery  
> information request to a particularly JID+node combination in order  
> to determine the friendly name, but if it does so then it MUST cache  
> the result for that JID+node combination.
> </suggestion>
>
> I really wanted to cache just based on the node, but "there's an  
> attack!" for people poisoning others' client names.  I don't think  
> that's really a concern, but perhaps that is over-practical.

I think caching based on JID+node kind of misses the point, since  
you'll then end up still with a flood of disco requests for any client  
where the users want the client version information.  As was noted in  
one of the previous rounds of XEP-0115 discussion, many users get up- 
in-arms about not being able to see that information.  Hence the  
iq:version floods of old.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't someone  
mention earlier in the thread specifically that when they took out  
version queries from a client in particular (I want to say it was  
Kevin talking about Psi), users howled bloody murder?

If we can only store the friendly name on a per-JID basis, then I  
would be willing to lay down money that user-demanded features will  
once again effectively have a 'flood' of discovery requests of some  
form, in order to have a friendly name to display.

-- 
Rachel Blackman <rcb at ceruleanstudios.com>
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