[cap-talk] Capability accounting

[Jed Donnelley]

At 09:59 PM 6/21/2006, Ian G wrote:
>Jed at Webstart wrote:
> > All,
> >
> > If others aren't interested in this topic (e.g. think it a waste of
> > time), why so?  E.g. because there isn't enough capability
> > infrastructure to account for (e.g. wideword?), because
> > capability mechanisms don't need accounting, because there's
> > some other clear and better way to do it, or what?
>
>As I hale from the digital money side, I see "accounting"
>as a poor copy of digital money.  Although it is interesting,
>I probably would always model it as a money problem.  Then,
>the accounting view tends to disappear.

Hmmm.  I can see how "digital money" might be appropriate to
deal with the sort of "space bank" accounting (to use Norm's term,
"paying" for relatively fixed resources), but how do you imagine
it to deal with more "metered" (again using Norm's term) charges
such as processing time?  With the typical accounting approach
(more like a credit card than like the "money" metaphor) resources
(cash?) are drawn from the account as used by processing.  If
the account becomes exhausted, the processing stops.  Perhaps
digital money could be used to replenish such an account, but
it's a bit difficult for me to imagine how digital money could be
used to eliminate the need for something like an account
altogether.  Wouldn't you end up having to make lots of little
deposits to used services all over the place to deal with such
"draw"s on what might otherwise be modeled as an account?

Perhaps you can enlighten me on how digital money
more naturally deals with managing such resource uses.

--Jed http://www.webstart.com/jed/