OCAFile Technical Specification

OCAFile is a technical specification for creating and managing OCA Bundles - a structured format for handling digital identity attributes and their metadata. Developed by the Human Colossus Foundation, this specification introduces a Domain-Specific Language (DSL) that enables both human-readable and machine-processable creation of OCA Bundles.

The standard's key innovation lies in its deterministic layered architecture, which implements a provenance log system where each modification creates a new layer with a cryptographic digest linking to previous states. This approach ensures complete traceability and versioning of all changes made to an OCA Bundle.

OCAFile is designed with several distinctive characteristics:

• Text-based Format

  • Human-readable syntax
  • Compatible with version control systems
  • Editable with any text editor

• Deterministic Architecture

  • Layer-based versioning
  • Cryptographic digest system
  • Directed acyclic graph structure

• Flexible Command System

  • Supports ADD, ALTER, and REMOVE operations
  • Handles multiple OCA object types
  • Manages attributes, classifications, and metadata

Technical Specifications:

1. Purpose and Scope

   • Define machine-readable syntax for OCA Bundle creation
   • Provide versioning and change management
   • Enable interoperable attribute definitions

2. Key Technical Specifications

   • Preprocessor directives for file metadata
   • Meta directives for bundle identification
   • Supports multiple attribute types:
     • Primitive: Binary, Boolean, DateTime, Numeric, Text
     • Collection: Array types
     • References: refn and refs types

3. Implementation Requirements

   • Command syntax: [OPERATION] [OCA OBJECT] [ARGUMENTS]
   • Directive format: # directive=value or -- directive=value
   • Support for character encoding, formatting, and localization

4. Security Considerations

   • Cryptographic digest system for layer verification
   • Append-only log structure
   • Provenance tracking for all modifications

5. Interoperability Features

   • ISO-639 country code support
   • Multiple language label support
   • Standardized attribute type system
   • Reference system for cross-bundle linking

The specification is licensed under EUPL v1.2 and maintained by the Human Colossus Foundation.