Stewardship
Open protocol
The Observatory Protocol is open, and the Nexus Consortium stewards it. The specification stays public, every change goes through a public process, and the name means the conformance tests were passed. Anyone can implement it. No single company sets its course.
01Why a steward
The observing systems that endure keep their rules with everyone who uses them. A protocol for the world’s instruments has to outlast any company, product cycle or government term.
Continuity
Instruments run for decades. The rules they speak must be kept by a body whose purpose is the protocol, not the products built on it.
Neutrality
Manufacturers, agencies, universities and communities implement the same text, pass the same tests and carry the same name on the same terms.
Trust
Every change is proposed, reviewed and decided in public, with its reasons and its compatibility impact recorded.
02What stewardship covers
Stewardship is deliberately narrow. It covers the protocol, not anyone’s instruments, data, products or prices.
01
SpecificationThe normative text: functions, states, objects, actors and flows.
Public, versioned
02
ConformanceThe tests an implementation must pass to say it speaks the protocol.
Open test suite
03
Change processHow a proposal becomes part of the protocol, and who decides.
Proposal to implemented
04
VersioningRelease numbers, compatibility rules and the support window for old versions.
Compatibility first
05
NamingWhen a product may say it implements the protocol, and how that is shown.
Conformance before claims
03Roles
A company can contribute to the protocol and build on it. It cannot steward it.
OBSERVATORY PROTOCOL
Open specification · conformance
NEXUS CONSORTIUM
Stewards the protocol
NEXUS OBSERVATORY INC.
Supports, contributes, builds on it
IMPLEMENTERS
Anyone may implement it
CONTRIBUTORS
Propose changes, keep their rights
contributes
implements
stewards
proposes
STEWARD
Keeps the specification, the conformance suite, the change process, versioning and naming.
SUPPORTER
Supports the protocol, contributes to it, gives builders access and support, and designs, builds and runs systems on it.
IMPLEMENTERS
Manufacturers, agencies, researchers and communities may implement the protocol and test against it.
CONTRIBUTORS
Propose changes in public. Your contribution comes in under an inbound licence; your rights stay yours.
04Change process
A change lands only when review accepts it and its conformance tests pass against an implementation. Rejected and withdrawn proposals stay on record, with reasons.
Returned for changes
Tests pass
Proposal
Review
Accepted
Implemented
Withdrawn or rejected
| State | Meaning | Leaves when |
|---|---|---|
| Proposal | Written in the open with motivation, text, compatibility notes and a test plan. | The author asks for review. |
| Review | Public review by implementers and the steward. Comments and answers are kept. | Accepted, returned for changes, or rejected. |
| Accepted | Agreed in principle; scheduled for a release. | Conformance tests pass against an implementation. |
| Implemented | Part of a released version of the protocol. | Superseded by a later proposal. |
| Withdrawn or rejected | Closed, kept on record with its reasons. | — |
Decision rules, quorum and appeal are set by the charter.
05Separation
The steward exists for the protocol; companies exist to build on it. These principles hold the line between them.
06Documents
What each one sets.
Purpose, scope of stewardship, decision rules and appeal.
Who may take part and on what terms.
The full proposal process, templates and review rules.
The terms under which the specification text is published.
A developer certificate of origin or a licence-grant agreement, never a copyright assignment.
When and how an implementation may use the protocol’s name.
—Begin
Read the specification, propose a change, or implement it in your instruments.
Read the protocolContributeThe Observatory Protocol is open, and the Nexus Consortium stewards it. The specification stays public, every change goes through a public process, and the name means the conformance tests were passed. Anyone can implement it. No single company sets its course.
The observing systems that endure keep their rules with everyone who uses them. A protocol for the world’s instruments has to outlast any company, product cycle or government term.
Instruments run for decades. The rules they speak must be kept by a body whose purpose is the protocol, not the products built on it.
Manufacturers, agencies, universities and communities implement the same text, pass the same tests and carry the same name on the same terms.
Every change is proposed, reviewed and decided in public, with its reasons and its compatibility impact recorded.
Stewardship is deliberately narrow. It covers the protocol, not anyone’s instruments, data, products or prices.
The normative text: functions, states, objects, actors and flows.
Public, versionedThe tests an implementation must pass to say it speaks the protocol.
Open test suiteHow a proposal becomes part of the protocol, and who decides.
Proposal to implementedRelease numbers, compatibility rules and the support window for old versions.
Compatibility firstWhen a product may say it implements the protocol, and how that is shown.
Conformance before claimsA company can contribute to the protocol and build on it. It cannot steward it.
Keeps the specification, the conformance suite, the change process, versioning and naming.
Supports the protocol, contributes to it, gives builders access and support, and designs, builds and runs systems on it.
Manufacturers, agencies, researchers and communities may implement the protocol and test against it.
Propose changes in public. Your contribution comes in under an inbound licence; your rights stay yours.
A change lands only when review accepts it and its conformance tests pass against an implementation. Rejected and withdrawn proposals stay on record, with reasons.
| State | Meaning | Leaves when |
|---|---|---|
| Proposal | Written in the open with motivation, text, compatibility notes and a test plan. | The author asks for review. |
| Review | Public review by implementers and the steward. Comments and answers are kept. | Accepted, returned for changes, or rejected. |
| Accepted | Agreed in principle; scheduled for a release. | Conformance tests pass against an implementation. |
| Implemented | Part of a released version of the protocol. | Superseded by a later proposal. |
| Withdrawn or rejected | Closed, kept on record with its reasons. | — |
Decision rules, quorum and appeal are set by the charter.
The steward exists for the protocol; companies exist to build on it. These principles hold the line between them.
What each one sets.
Purpose, scope of stewardship, decision rules and appeal.
Who may take part and on what terms.
The full proposal process, templates and review rules.
The terms under which the specification text is published.
A developer certificate of origin or a licence-grant agreement, never a copyright assignment.
When and how an implementation may use the protocol’s name.
Read the specification, propose a change, or implement it in your instruments.
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