Welcome to yet another issue of the Jabber Journal! (This is issue #17, which makes me happy because I like prime numbers.)
The big news this time is obviously the fact that the core Jabber protocols have been approved by the Internet Engineering Task Force as Proposed Standards. We have been working on this for a long time (Jeremie and I submitted the first protocol specfication over two years ago), so it's worth taking a step back to see what IETF approval means.
Since submitting that initial document, we renamed our submission the Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP), formed the XMPP Working Group, split the original document into two parts (XMPP Core and XMPP IM), and submitted many revisions while our specifications underwent rigorous cross-area review within the IETF's standards process. The result is a set of core XML streaming protocols (XMPP Core) and basic IM and presence extensions (XMPP IM) that meets the IETF's toughest requirements for security and internationalization, while ensuring backwards-compatibility with the large installed base of Jabber software. And high-quality protocols approved by the IETF get serious consideration from the most demanding CTOs and software architects in the world's largest organizations (more about that in issue #18).
So what's next? First, these two documents will wend their way through the RFC Editor queue and receive official RFC numbers. After waiting the required six months, we will seek to move these specifications forward within the standards process so that they become Draft Standards and eventually finalized as just Standards. We will also continue to work on several other Internet-Drafts we have submitted, and to contribute to efforts within the IETF dedicated to ensuring interoperability with other open protocols such as SIMPLE.
In addition, the Jabber Software Foundation will continue to define open extensions to the core XMPP protocols through the JEP process, much as the W3C defines protocols carried over HTTP. The JSF will also collaborate with other standards bodies, such as Liberty Alliance, on ways to include XMPP in the wider standards conversation happening on the Internet today.
Last but not least, the hardworking developers in the Jabber community will finish the non-trivial task of upgrading their software to comply with the XMPP specifications, leading to improved security and better cross-language support for the millions of people using Jabber for instant messaging and presence. Some notable, recent examples include the Exodus client (check out this changelog), the multi-protocol Gaim client (kudos to Nathan Walp for all the new Jabber code), the jabberd2 and ejabberd servers, Agile Messenger for Symbian, and recent commercial server releases from Antepo, Jabber Inc., and Winfessor.
Naturally, the fact that code libraries and software applications are being upgraded means that people who have built custom applications or deployed Jabber services will eventually need to upgrade as well. In the next issue of the Jabber Journal we'll talk more about some of those applications and services, because Jabber is not just a protocol spec but a dynamic technology space wherein innovative organizations and developers are building out the real-time Internet. So stay tuned!
Finally, a personal note. A lot of people attribute the success of our work with the IETF to me, since my name is on the documents. Please note that it says I am the document editor. Countless individuals contributed their time and expertise to this effort and deserve to be recognized (though I don't have room to list them all here). Wise guidance through the IETF standards process came from Marshall Rose as well as from XMPP WG co-chairs Lisa Dusseault and Pete Resnick. Major protocol contributors included people like Joe Hildebrand, Peter Millard, and Rob Norris. Indeed, XMPP may seem new but it is merely a formalization of the streaming XML protocols first developed in the Jabber community back in 1999 by early core contributors like Ryan Eatmon, Thomas Muldowney, and Dave Smith. And of course all thanks are due to Jeremie Miller for dreaming up Jabber in the first place. Truly, we stand on the shoulders of giants.
Until next time, Jabber on!
--stpeter