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		<title>Why DNS needs an API</title>
		<dateCreated>Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:45:01 GMT</dateCreated>
		<dateModified>Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:57:01 GMT</dateModified>
		<ownerName>Dave Winer</ownerName>
		<ownerEmail>dave.winer@gmail.com</ownerEmail>
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		<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:45:01 GMT" ctSaves="11" flPreview="false" id="2011.10.28.1409" server="xmlrpc://cms.scripting2.com:5337/RPC2" storySerialNum="1409" text="Why DNS needs an API" type="scripting2Post" url="http://scripting.com/stories/2011/10/28/whyDnsNeedsAnApi.html" username="davewiner" versionClient="0.44" versionServer="0.44" whenLastSave="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:57:02 GMT">
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:45:16 GMT" pgfnum="10539" text="&lt;img src=&quot;http://scripting.com/images/2011/10/28/tryHarder.jpg&quot; width=&quot;145&quot; height=&quot;141&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; align=&quot;right&quot; hspace=&quot;15&quot; vspace=&quot;5&quot; alt=&quot;A picture named tryHarder.jpg&quot; class=&quot;storyImage&quot;&gt;I'm trying to talk &lt;a href=&quot;https://www.hover.com/domains&quot;&gt;Hover&lt;/a&gt; into implementing a simple DNS API. We have what we need from Amazon, but it's not a good idea to build on a single vendor's system. Having an alternative to swtich to if there's trouble would be good. "></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:54:01 GMT" pgfnum="10541" text="So here's how my outlining software uses the &lt;a href=&quot;http://aws.amazon.com/route53/&quot;&gt;DNS API&lt;/a&gt; from Amazon. When &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outliners.com/&quot;&gt;outliners&lt;/a&gt; are used to author web content they often have a huge &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.useit.com/alertbox/980614.html&quot;&gt;linkrot&lt;/a&gt; problem, because the address of an object is a function of its location in the outline. Move it, and all previous links broke. "></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:42:06 GMT" pgfnum="10536" text="But you use an outliner for its ability to reorganize, and it's that very ability that makes it more likely that links will break."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:47:02 GMT" pgfnum="10540" text="We used to think this was just a tradeoff you had to live with..."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:42:42 GMT" pgfnum="10537" text="But then we hit on the idea of placing a name on a headline, that stays with it as it moves around. And if that name were managed by DNS, we wouldn't even have to write a resolver for the name, DNS would do most of the work for us! Really neat when an ancient bit of technology ends up solving a very modern problem. Love it. "></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:43:59 GMT" pgfnum="10538" text="But -- creating a new CNAME is a major distraction!"></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:35:41 GMT" pgfnum="10518" text="This is what you have to do to create a new CNAME."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:36:51 GMT" pgfnum="10520" text="1. Bring the browser to the front."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:36:38 GMT" pgfnum="10519" text="2. Choose the Domains page of your DNS provider from your Bookmarks menu."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:37:13 GMT" pgfnum="10521" text="3. Log in if necessary."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:37:20 GMT" pgfnum="10522" text="4. Choose the domain from your list of domains."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:37:36 GMT" pgfnum="10523" text="5. Click the link to edit the zone file."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:37:44 GMT" pgfnum="10524" text="6. Add a new CNAME."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:37:50 GMT" pgfnum="10525" text="7. Click Submit and wait."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:38:02 GMT" pgfnum="10526" text="8. Find your way back to doing what you were doing."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:38:13 GMT" pgfnum="10527" text="That's why we don't use DNS as a way of marking a spot in a web structure. "></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:38:47 GMT" pgfnum="10528" text="But what if, instead, there was a button in my outliner that did most of the work."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:39:37 GMT" pgfnum="10529" text="1. Click the Add Marker button."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:39:43 GMT" pgfnum="10530" text="2. Enter a name in a dialog."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:39:49 GMT" pgfnum="10531" text="3. Click OK."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:39:51 GMT" pgfnum="10532" text="4. Wait a few seconds."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:39:56 GMT" pgfnum="10533" text="The important thing is that you didn't have to switch contexts, or load up your brain with a whole other lengthy task and then somehow try to regain the context of your work. You're much more likely, in teh first scenario, to avoid it -- too much trouble. In the second, once you understood what it did, it's relatively painless."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:41:10 GMT" pgfnum="10534" text="The key is to add an API to DNS so the functionality can be integrated into the editing app."></outline>
			<outline created="Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:56:20 GMT" pgfnum="10542" text="BTW, we only use a very small subset of the Amazon API. One entrypoint is all that's absolutely necessary, one that creates a new CNAME record."></outline>
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