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Standards Organizations Overview

Introduction​

The Metaverse Metadata Directory (MVMD) is designed as a collaborative integration framework that enhances and promotes existing metadata standards rather than competing with them. For standards organizations (SDOs), MVMD offers a unique opportunity to increase adoption, improve implementation quality, and discover synergies with complementary standards.

This guide outlines the benefits of engaging with MVMD and provides the practical steps for integrating your standard.

Why Engage with MVMD? Key Benefits for SDOs​

Engaging with MVMD provides several advantages for your standard and community:

  1. Increased Standard Adoption:

    • Provides clear, actionable implementation guidance for your standard within a broader context.
    • Creates ready-to-use patterns (Integration Profiles) incorporating your standard.
    • Demonstrates how your standard solves real-world metaverse problems.
    • Makes integration with other complementary standards straightforward.

  2. Complementary Integration:

    • MVMD helps define clear boundaries and interactions between different standards.
    • Uses proper namespacing to avoid conflicts.
    • Provides validated implementation patterns for multi-standard scenarios.

  3. Real-World Feedback Channel:

    • Identify implementation challenges and edge cases for your standard when used alongside others.
    • Gather cross-domain requirements and build industry consensus.

  4. Enhanced Validator Support:

    • Benefit from cross-standard validation capabilities.
    • Test implementations in mixed-standard contexts.
    • Identify interoperability issues early.

  5. MVMD as Extension Point:

    • Use MVMD as a practical proving ground for new standard extensions or interoperability ideas before formal standardization.

Case Study: Multi-Standard Integration​

Consider a virtual character scenario that requires multiple standards:

  1. glTF/VRM for the character model and rigging
  2. Schema.org for basic discoverability and attribution
  3. C2PA for provenance and authentication
  4. USD for scene integration and animations

Without MVMD, developers must:

  • Research each standard independently
  • Determine how to combine them without conflicts
  • Create ad-hoc implementation patterns
  • Build custom validation systems

With MVMD, developers can:

  • Follow validated integration patterns
  • Use established namespacing conventions
  • Implement clear component relationships
  • Validate their implementation holistically

How Standards Organizations Can Engage​

There are several ways SDOs can participate:

  1. Direct Involvement:

    • Become a supporting organization.
    • Join the technical steering committee.
    • Provide official implementation guidance for your standard.
    • Help validate recommended integration patterns.

  2. Technical Integration:

    • Review how your standard is represented within MVMD's structure and namespaces.
    • Provide official validation rules or schemas.
    • Contribute to integration examples involving your standard.
    • Assist with resolving edge cases where standards interact.

  3. Community Building:

    • Co-host implementation workshops or webinars.
    • Share MVMD resources with your developer community.
    • Gather feedback from implementers using your standard within MVMD.

We actively review feedback and contributions from SDOs and have processes in place to incorporate suggested improvements into the MVMD framework and Integration Profiles.

Standard Integration Process​

To formally integrate your standard with the MVMD framework, follow these steps:

  1. Standard Registration:

    • Define Namespace: Choose a consistent prefix (e.g., yourStandardPrefix).
    • Document URI: Establish the canonical URI for your standard's vocabulary (e.g., https://your-standard.org/v1/).
    • Submit Request: Contact the MVMD team ([contact information placeholder]) with details about your standard.

  2. Schema Integration:

    • Map Properties: Identify how core properties of your standard map to or complement Schema.org.
    • Define Extensions: Document any custom properties specific to your standard using the chosen namespace.
    • Establish Relationships: Clarify how your standard interacts with or relates to other common standards within MVMD.
    • Provide Examples: Create clear JSON-LD examples showing how to use your standard's properties within MVMD metadata.

  3. Validation Rules:

    • Define Requirements: Specify mandatory fields, data types, and formats for your standard's properties.
    • Provide Schema: Ideally, contribute a JSON Schema snippet for validating your standard's namespace usage within MVMD.
    • Document Constraints: Explain any rules regarding valid property combinations or relationships.

  4. Implementation Support:

    • Share Best Practices: Document recommended ways to implement your standard within the MVMD context.
    • List Common Issues: Help implementers avoid potential pitfalls.
    • Contribute to Guides: Help integrate guidance for your standard into relevant MVMD Implementation Guides or Integration Profiles.

Integration Examples​

Basic Integration Example​

{
  "@context": {
    "@vocab": "https://schema.org/",
    "mvmd": "https://mvmd.org/v1/",
    "yourStandardPrefix": "https://your-standard.org/v1/" // Your namespace URI
  },
  "@type": "3DModel", // Or other appropriate Schema.org type
  "name": "Example Asset Using Your Standard",
  // Other Schema.org properties...
  "yourStandardPrefix:yourCustomProperty": "value",
  "yourStandardPrefix:anotherProperty": {
    "nestedKey": "nestedValue"
  }
}

Complex Integration (Placeholder)​

(This section can be expanded with a more complex example showing interaction between multiple standards)

{
  "@context": {
    "@vocab": "https://schema.org/",
    "mvmd": "https://mvmd.org/v1/",
    "yourStandardPrefix": "https://your-standard.org/v1/",
    "anotherStandard": "https://another-standard.org/v1/"
  },
  "@type": "Thing",
  "name": "Complex Asset Example",
  "yourStandardPrefix:complexProperty": {
    "nested": "value",
    "array": ["item1", "item2"]
  },
  "anotherStandard:relatedProperty": "relatedValue"
}

Best Practices for SDOs​

When integrating your standard, consider these best practices:

  1. Namespace Management: Use a clear, consistent, and versioned namespace URI.
  2. Schema Design: Leverage Schema.org where possible; keep standard-specific extensions focused. Document all properties clearly.
  3. Validation: Provide clear validation rules and ideally a schema snippet. Include informative error messages.
  4. Documentation: Keep your standard's documentation within MVMD up-to-date. Include practical examples and explain the rationale behind design choices.

Next Steps for Standards Organizations​

  1. Review Current Representation: See how your standard (or similar ones) might already be mentioned or used within the existing documentation.
  2. Provide Feedback: Suggest improvements or corrections via [GitHub Issues/Discussions Link Placeholder].
  3. Consider Supporting: Explore becoming an official supporting organization.
  4. Contact Us: Reach out to [contact information placeholder] to discuss collaboration.

Support and Resources​

We're committed to working with standards organizations to ensure accurate, effective representation and implementation of your standards within the MVMD framework.