PIANOSA9_How_To.html

- Introduction

PIANOSA9 is an experimental system for dealing with some of the technical, political, and socio-economic problems of World-Wide-Web publishing. The technical problems have to do mostly with bad links ("dead links", "lost links", or "broken links"), for which Shang-Du Links are one possible solution. The only socio-economic question directly addressed by the PIANOSA9 protocol is how to create an accessible web document without taking "possession" of an actual web "address".

Politically, we're talking (of course) about censorship.

First and foremost, PIANOSA9 is intended to facilitate the free exchange of information generally, via the web. Specifically, PIANOSA9 facilitates automatic mirroring of web documents, maximizing distribution and visibility to search-engines.

Using PIANOSA9 is easy: Just make a PIANOSA9 directory (or "folder") on your (or someone's) website. Then put any PIANOSA9 files you want to share into that directory/folder. Include any and all PIANOSA9 files from anywhere on the web.

What makes a file "PIANOSA9"? Simple: Being in a PIANOSA9 directory/folder is enough.

However, because of the WWW complexities and inconsistancies that PIANOSA9 is intended to address, a "serious" PIANOSA9 document requires a little more attention. Not much - just check the list below. All are basically optional, in the sense that no one item will disqualify a file as "un-PIANOSA9". The intent in compiling this list was to provide means for making files "PIANOSA9-friendly". That is, a hypothetical PIANOSA9 web-crawler would be looking for files with these characteristics. (Note that placing the file in a PIANOSA9 directory/folder is the most important.)

Finally, PIANOSA9 only works if people use it and find it useful. Files have to be copied to be made available; PIANOSA9 only makes it easier and more effective. The purpose of this document is to describe a method by which anyone's work can be made universally accessible via the PIANOSA9 system.

- Making PIANOSA9 Files

1. STAMP File with appropriate Shang-Du Link. This allows the file to be located anywhere on the web via search, regardless of original URL.
2. COPYLEFT File with a line similiar to the "Copyright" notice above. This grants legal right to copy the file verbatim. (The actual language used depends somewhat on the purpose of the document, but the sentance "Verbatim copying and distribution of this document is permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved" was specifically formulated for PIANOSA9 use.)
   Note that a "copylefted" document is not the same as public domain! (Refer to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/.)
3. MARK File with the 8-character ASCII string "PIANOSA9" (ALL-CAPS). This signals search-engines and web-crawlers, etc., that the PIANOSA9protocol applies. Note that all MARKs of the PIANOSA9 protocol should be ASCII-ALLCAPS.
4. MARK File with the ASCII string "XXX" (ALL-CAPS) ONLY IF file is controversial This is a proposed standard to deal with so-called "adult" content on the web. It works like this: A PIANOSA9 file should include an ASCII-ALLCAPS "XXX" somewhere (anywhere within the file) if that file's content could be deemed even possibly objectionable for:
   • young children;
   • prudes;
   • cops;
   • religious people;
   • the otherwise squeamish, impressionable, or uptight.
   Tough standard? That's the idea: "XXX" is a catch-all. "Adult" readers can access "adult" information freely; those that feel they need a nanny to protect them can deal with the hodgepodge patchwork of filters, etc. The burden is placed on those who demand censors, rather than vica versa.
   So, when making a PIANOSA9 file, use "XXX" when the file includes (or refers to) material that is:
   • political, pornographic, or otherwise "adult";
   • illegal, immoral, unethical, or illegitimate;
   • quasi-legal, quasi-moral, quasi-ethical, quasi-legitimate;
   • possible to perceive or misconstrue as any of the above;
   • potentially offensive for any other reasons;
   • about subjects that would fall into those categories;
   • simply bad for an individual's or entity's image or social standing - with special emphasis for commercial sites.
   
   In other words, someone browsing or copying a PIANOSA9 "XXX" file does so at their own risk, whereas un-"XXX" files default as (relatively) "safe".
   MARKing a file with "XXX" doesn't, of course, exclude it from anyplace it isn't welcome. On the contrary, it demands acceptance ahead of time.
   If in doubt, use "XXX".
5. MARK File with the ASCII string "SPAM" (ALL-CAPS) ONLY IF file is commercial. "SPAM" may sound harsh. But like "XXX", "SPAM" is intended to raise the bar to the highest possible standard. That means that the document won't be where it isn't welcome, in the hopes that it will be welcome wherever it does show up.
   The standard is simple: Is the PIANOSA9 document meant to buy/sell/trade? Then use "SPAM". (It should be noted that "SPAM" can be discretely placed - even hidden - so long as it appears as an ASCII string somewhere in the file's binary image.)
6. CHECK File with the W3C HTML Validation Service (or equivalent) ONLY IF file is HTML. This step is unneeded for small, simple documents. But for larger works - online books, etc. - it's very important.
   Good HTML is easy to do. It means that all browsers - past, present, and future - can read your document. There's no point in bothering with a protocol like PIANOSA9 if your document can't be properly seen.
7. INCLUDE (optional) Translation links (such as http://babel.altavista.com/). This has nothing to do with the technical requirements of PIANOSA9. It's mentioned here because it is an easy-to-add feature that assures the widest-possible audience, which is consistant with the goals of the PIANOSA9 system. (Refer to the HTML code included in this document.)
8. INCLUDE (optional) Freedom-of-Information/Anti-Censorship links (such as http://www.eff.org/ or http://www.eff.org/br/). Again, this is not a technical requirement. Simply a suggestion to help the general cause.
9. INCLUDE (optional) Open Source links (such as http://www.gnu.org/). Ditto. Same as Freedom-of-Information/Anti-Censorship links.
10. SAVE File in a PIANOSA9 directory (or "folder"). As mentioned in the Introduction, this is the most important part. Remember that "PIANOSA9" must be 8 (eight) characters long, and all upper-case ASCII.

- PIANOSA9 Reference

- Shang-Du Reference

- Japanese - Korean - Chinese