RFC 2288 (rfc2288) - Page 1 of 10

Using Existing Bibliographic Identifiers as Uniform Resource Names

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Network Working Group                                          C. Lynch
Request for Comments: 2288          Coalition for Networked Information
Category: Informational                                      C. Preston
                                                        Preston & Lynch
                                                              R. Daniel
                                         Los Alamos National Laboratory
                                                          February 1998


                Using Existing Bibliographic Identifiers
                                   as
                         Uniform Resource Names

Status of this Memo

   This memo provides information for the Internet community.  It does
   not specify an Internet standard of any kind.  Distribution of this
   memo is unlimited.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (1998).  All Rights Reserved.

Abstract

   A system for Uniform Resource Names (URNs) must be capable of
   supporting identifiers from existing widely-used naming systems.
   This document discusses how three major bibliographic identifiers
   (the ISBN, ISSN and SICI) can be supported within the URN framework
   and the currently proposed syntax for URNs.

1. Introduction

   The ongoing work of several IETF working groups, most recently in the
   Uniform Resource Names working group, has culminated the development
   of a syntax for Uniform Resource Names (URNs).   The functional
   requirements and overall framework for Uniform Resource Names are
   specified in RFC 1737 [Sollins & Masinter] and the specification for
   the URN syntax is RFC 2141 [Moats].

   As part of the validation process for the development of URNs the
   IETF working group has agreed that it is important to demonstrate
   that the current URN syntax proposal can accommodate existing
   identifiers from well established namespaces.  One such
   infrastructure for assigning and managing names comes from the
   bibliographic community.  Bibliographic identifiers function as names
   for objects that exist both in print and, increasingly, in electronic
   formats.  This memo demonstrates the feasibility of supporting three



Lynch, et. al.               Informational
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