Dear Former Lifer,

WHAT?
________________________________________________________________________

I would like to propose to make LIFE (Logic Inheritance Function
Equations) an Open Source project at http://www.sourceforge.org/.

WHY?
________________________________________________________________________

In many ways, as a rule-based deductive language over graph objects
treated as constraints, LIFE has been right on the dot from the start
anticipating such technologies as object- and rule-based computing for
"intelligent" applications---e.g., Business Rules and the Semantic Web
(XML, RDF, OWL, etc.). In this sense, the LIFE language has innovated as
a pioneer before time was fully ripe for its potential to be revealed.

The advent of the Semantic Web, in particular, has recently spurred a
wave of interest in object- and rule-based declarative languages [1],
[2].  As importantly, and concommitantly, object- and rule-based
computing is at the root of the recent and growing commercial success of
rule-based Business Process Management software for "agile" computing in
Business and e-Commerce (e.g., Business Rules [3]).  All such systems
are based on so-called "conceptual ontologies" (i.e., object models) and
formal standards are being actively sought (see, e.g., [4] and [5]).

LIFE's computational paradigms, and extensions thereof, offer an
intriguing potential for contributing to such a momentous revolution as
the Semantic Web, offering advanced computing and reasoning power over
constrained graphs for knowledge representation and processing over the
Internet.

HOW?
________________________________________________________________________

The idea of an Open Source LIFE Project is to make available a system at
least as capable of what was achieved in the past in the form of the
Wild_Life interpreters and Half_Life compiler, but more importantly to
redesign it from scratch in order to enable it with recent advances in
research and technology. In particular, the core of LIFE can benefit
from better-understood constraint-processing techniques for representing,
and reasoning with, constrained objects. This may be done by extending
the OSF formalism to allow additional axioms to be added to those making
up basic OSF logic, such as:

        - Partial features [i.e., range-restricted attributes]
        - Extensional sorts [i.e., unique representation of individuals]
        - OSF-theory unification [including self-compilation of ontologies]
        - Incremental constraint inheritance [i.e., proof memoization]
        - Monoidal attributes [including collection-valued (list, set,
                               multiset, etc.), aggregates (sum, min, etc.)]
        - etc.

As important is the objective of this project to make LIFE a modern Web
language with capabilities such as, e.g.:

        - Platform independence (run anywhere)
        - WWW awareness (URIs, HTTP, etc.)
        - XML/XSLT/RDF(S)/OWL processing
        - Semantic Web readiness (e.g., RIF-compliance)
        - Extended modular constraint-solving
        - etc.

WHEN?
________________________________________________________________________

This "Life Revival" plan is only at its inception with the following
agenda:

        1 - Discuss the project with interested parties: potential
            sponsors, former lifers, and anyone else interested.
        2 - Draft a proposal specifying:
            (1) a charter defining the project, its objectives, milestones,
                and deliverables;
            (2) a process methodology explicating how to achieve the
                charter's objectives; and,
            (3) a working group protocol enabling the technical supervision
                and coordination of development work.
        3 - Submit the proposed charter to funding partners (in cash or
            in kind).
        4 - Launch the project.

SO?
________________________________________________________________________

As you may surmise, you are receiving this message because of your past
association with LIFE. Its goal is to find out whether you would be
interested in participating in such a project (in any quality - see
below - as a specifier, developer, adviser, consultant, helping us find
sponsors, or simply as an interested observer, or as all of the above!
:-)

Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

-hak

------------------------------------------------------------------------

REFERENCES

[1] http://www.w3.org/2004/12/rules-ws/
[2] http://www.w3.org/2005/rules/wg)
[3] http://www.businessrulesforum.com/
[4] http://www.omg.org/docs/bmi/05-12-06.pdf
[5] http://www.bptrends.com/publicationfiles/bptemailadvisor091404%2Epdf

------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE ANSWER SOUGHT FROM YOU AT THIS POINT:

Please check one:

        [ ]     No, I am NOT interested
        [ ]     Yes, I AM interested

If you checked 'Yes', please check some of, or as many as you wish, in
what quality you could participate to the LIFE Revival Project:

        [ ]     Steering Committee Member
        [ ]     Technical Committee Member
                [ ]     Specifier
                [ ]     Developer
                [ ]     Tester
                [ ]     Distribution Manager
        [ ]     Occasional Consultant
        [ ]     Sponsor Liaison
        [ ]     Interested Observer
        [ ]     All Of The Above !
        [ ]     ...                             [your suggestion here]

And please send back to Hassan At-Kaci (hak@ilog.com). Any other
comments or suggestions that you may offer at this point is welcome.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
