[dnsext] RFC 2142 and "organization's top level domain"

[Dave CROCKER <[e-mail]>]

Folks,

I'm trying to resolve an erratum, on RFC 2142, MAILBOX NAMES FOR COMMON 
SERVICES, ROLES AND FUNCTIONS".  The current focus is a narrow matter of 
nomenclature.  Broader issues about a full revision effort for the document are 
worthy, but outside of the current scope.

RFC 2142 uses the phrase "organization's top level domain".  This refers to the 
string that is delegated to the organization and provides the root of any 
sub-tree to the DNS that they create.  Around the world and around the DNS, this 
'root' will have two or more fields, such as bbiw.net or ucl.ac.uk. (And with 
recent TLD rule changes, presumably this now is /one/ or more fields...)

So it would refer to ietf.org, rather than tools.ietf.org or www.ietf.org, and 
ucl.ac.uk, rather than www.ucl.ac.uk or bartlett.ucl.ac.uk, for example.

The construct of a domain name that an organization registers, and for which it 
receives a delegation, is important.  Yet there appears to be no common term for 
it.  RFC 2142 was written quite awhile ago.  It uses a term that is formally 
reasonable, but which has become potentially confusing.  The reference to "top 
level" for a domain name, is now so universally taken to mean a TLD, that it is 
reasonable to assume that the "organizational" qualifier is not sufficient to 
move the reader away from the meaning they are likely to expect.

So the question is what other term to use?

I raised this question to the IETF applications discussion list and we wandered 
over various choices.  Tony Finch came up with one that I'd like to declare the 
winner, unless you folks come up with something better:

    organization's principal domain name


Comments?

d/
-- 

   Dave Crocker
   Brandenburg InternetWorking
   bbiw.net