Web Naming and Addressing Overview (URIs, URLs,
...)
Naming and Addressing: URIs, URLs, ...
Links ·
About
URIs
History
This is an overview of W3C materials related to Addressing. The
URI Activity Statement
explains W3C's
work on this topic in more detail.
Standards Track Specifications
Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax
Internationalized Resource Identifiers (IRIs)
BCP for scheme registration process
guidelines for new schemes
IANA's list of
URI schemes
Current W3C work on URIs
URI Activity Statement
URI Interest Group
URIs, URLs, and URNs:
Clarifications and Recommendations 1.0
W3C Note Sep
2001
(also
RFC 3305
(informational))
Related W3C work
Technical Architecture Group
(TAG)
Internationalization
Semantic Web
RDF
Extensible Markup
Language (XML)
Related
IETF
work, supported by W3C
HTTP
Work on
RFC
2396 update
(to IETF Standard)
Personal Perspectives
Hypertext
Style: Cool URIs don't change
by Tim
Berners-Lee in
Style
Guide for online hypertext
A Beginner's Guide to URLs
The classic
intro to URLs, by
The NCSA Mosaic
team
on URI vs. URL
Oct 1997
IETF - Uniform
Resource Identifiers (URI) Working Group
maintained by Roy Fielding
Tim Berners-Lee's original writings on
Document Naming
, part of
Design Issues
for
the Web
some
older notes
by Dan
Connolly
URI
Model Consequences
, by Jim Gettys
Community
Discussion
uri@w3.org
www-talk@w3.org
UriSchemes
topic in the ESW Wiki
Learning About
URIs
The Web is an information space. Human beings have a lot of
mental machinery for manipulating, imagining, and finding their
way in spaces. URIs are the points in that space.
Unlike web data formats, where HTML is an important one, but
not the only one, and web protocols, where HTTP has a similar
status, there is only one Web naming/addressing technology:
URIs.
Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs, aka URLs) are short
strings that identify resources in the web: documents, images,
downloadable files, services, electronic mailboxes, and other
resources. They make resources available under a variety of
naming schemes and access methods such as HTTP, FTP, and Internet
mail addressable in the same simple way. They reduce the tedium
of "log in to this server, then issue this magic command ..."
down to a single click.
It is an extensible technology: there are a number of existing
addressing schemes, and more may be incorporated over time.
Timeline: News, Events,
Publications, and History
This is a
publication history, or
bibliography
collected from
IETF
documents and
W3C Technical Reports
as well as a record of
events.
Jan 2005
Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax
[RFC3986]
Jan 2005
Internationalized Resource Identifiers (IRIs)
March 2003
Uniform Resource Identifiers (uribof) Bof at
IETF 56
in
San Francisco
March 2001
Future
of URI (FURI) BOF
at
IETF
50, Minneapolis
Nov 1999
Guidelines for new URL
Schemes
, November 1999 RFC2718
Nov 1999
Registration
Procedures for URL Scheme Names
R. Petke, (RFC
2717)
Dec 1998
Hypertext Style: Cool
URIs don't change
section added to
Style Guide for online
hypertext
August 1998
Uniform
Resource Identifiers (URI): Generic Syntax
(RFC 2396) T. Berners-Lee, R. Fielding, L. Masinter
May 1997
URN
Syntax
RFC 2141 R. Moats
Apr 1997
38th
IETF
: URN WG
meeting (
research notes
Dec 1996
San Jose
IETF
--
URL
BOF
Nov 1996
W3C and Digital
Libraries
, James S. Miller,
D-Lib Magazine
Spring 1996
2nd issue of
W3J
Key Specifications of the World
Wide Web
includes URI specs.
July 1995
IETF URI Working Group is closed.
June 1995
RFC
1808
released as
Proposed Standard
Relative Uniform Resource Locators
R.
Fielding
Abstract:
... When embedded within a base document, a URL in its
absolute form may contain a great deal of information which
is already known from the context of that base document's
retrieval, including the scheme, network location, and
parts of the url-path. In situations where the base URL is
well-defined and known to the parser (human or machine), it
is useful to be able to embed URL references which inherit
that context rather than re-specifying it in every
instance.
This one is both authoritative (i.e. it's been through the
IETF proposed standard process) and accurate on the matter of
the syntax of URLs. Its grammar is complete and consistent,
and there are several clarifying examples.
On the other hand, it does not discuss any of the actual
URL schemes (such as HTTP, FTP, ...)
December 1994
(RFC
1738)
released as
Proposed Standard
Uniform Resource Locators (URL)
T.
Berners-Lee, L. Masinter, M. McCahill
Abstract:
This document specifies a Uniform Resource Locator (URL),
the syntax and semantics of formalized information for
location and access of resources via the Internet.
This one is ratified as an IETF proposed standard, and it
discusses each of the URL schemes (known at that time), but
its grammar has some mistakes, and it doesn't cover several
aspects of URL syntax, such as relative URLs and fragment
identifiers
December 1994
RFC 1737
Informational
Functional Requirements for Uniform Resource
Names
, K. Sollins, L. Masinter
Abstract:
This document specifies a minimum set of requirements for a
kind of Internet resource identifier known as Uniform
Resource Names (URNs). ...
June 1994
RFC 1630
Informational
, is released:
Universal Resource Identifiers in WWW: A Unifying
Syntax for the Expression of Names and Addresses of Objects
on the Network as used in the World-Wide Web
T.
Berners-Lee.
This documents the designer's intent, before it was revised
by the standards process. It was written by Tim Berners-Lee,
but has only informational status in the IETF. It discusses all
aspects of URLs (relative, etc.) though it has some mistakes in
the grammar etc.
March 94
IETF URI working group is formed
1991
Tim Berners-Lee's original writings on
Document Naming
, part of
Design Issues
for the Web
See also:
Background and History of the
Web
W3C News and Announcements
Dan Connolly
$Revision: 1.58 $ of $Date: 2006/02/27 15:15:52 $
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TimBL
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