{ "title": "A page can change. Its edition should not. — Standards & citation", "text": "MODAVIS (2026). A page can change. Its edition should not. — Standards & citation. Research notebooks, September 2026 · Connected evidence edition. https://modavis.org/editions/2026-09-r6/standards/versions/", "bibtex": "@misc{modavis_standards_versions_2026_09_r6,\n author = {{MODAVIS}},\n title = {A page can change. Its edition should not. — Standards & citation},\n year = {2026},\n month = {09},\n version = {2026-09-r6},\n url = {https://modavis.org/editions/2026-09-r6/standards/versions/},\n note = {Content SHA-256: 02384a7cbe0b70d3d722849a07a621d9866a47df6bcc907fc36eae6f9cbe0514}\n}", "url": "https://modavis.org/editions/2026-09-r6/standards/versions/", "sha256": "02384a7cbe0b70d3d722849a07a621d9866a47df6bcc907fc36eae6f9cbe0514", "edition": "2026-09-r6", "date": "2026-09-26", "canonicalPayload": "{\"book\":{\"number\":\"08\",\"slug\":\"standards\",\"title\":\"Standards & citation\"},\"chapter\":{\"blocks\":[{\"items\":[{\"detail\":\"A continuous worked example: readable explanations, exact records and the limits of each claim.\",\"href\":\"/notebooks/standards/cuntz/\",\"label\":\"Learn this through the Cuntz organ\"}],\"type\":\"links\"},{\"text\":\"The ordinary notebook address points to the current explanatory text. An edition address includes a named snapshot and continues to serve that snapshot’s content when the living notebook is revised.\",\"type\":\"p\"},{\"id\":\"preserved\",\"text\":\"What is preserved\",\"type\":\"heading\"},{\"items\":[\"The notebook and chapter identity.\",\"The chapter introduction, text, figures and structured content.\",\"The reference list and its recorded resource links.\",\"The edition date and a SHA-256 content fingerprint.\"],\"type\":\"list\"},{\"id\":\"checking\",\"text\":\"Checking a citation\",\"type\":\"heading\"},{\"text\":\"Download the page’s citation metadata to retrieve the canonical JSON payload and the expected SHA-256 value. Recomputing the digest of that payload checks content identity. It cannot establish the truth of the content or the continued availability of an external source.\",\"type\":\"p\"},{\"boundary\":\"This website verifies the model’s expected byte length and full SHA-256 before passing it to the renderer. That is a file-identity check, not a VAO conformance report.\",\"caseLabel\":\"Cuntz\",\"concept\":\"A checksum is a fingerprint calculated from bytes. Fixity checking compares that fingerprint with a trusted expected value to detect changed or mismatched files.\",\"evidence\":\"Released record\",\"expanded\":false,\"id\":\"cuntz-fixity\",\"scenario\":\"The published GLB source for this notebook has SHA-256 beginning 19527c2188b08d85. The display derivative has a different digest because its texture and encoding were changed.\",\"sources\":[{\"detail\":\"Published manifest: identities, measurement observations, realization digests, profiles and rights. Exact examples checked against this release.\",\"href\":\"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22151203\",\"label\":\"Cuntz Positiv · VAO 0.5.0-rc.2\"},{\"detail\":\"The standard contract is separate from the Cuntz dataset content version 0.5.0-rc.2.\",\"href\":\"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22214248\",\"label\":\"VAO Standard 0.5.0\"}],\"steps\":[{\"text\":\"Check the complete source GLB digest against the exact source realization. Compare the website derivative against its own expected digest, not against the source GLB’s digest.\",\"title\":\"Compare like with like\"},{\"text\":\"A texture conversion or mesh encoding change produces a different file identity. Even reformatting a JSON manifest can change its exact-byte hash without changing its parsed meaning.\",\"title\":\"Notice byte-changing edits\"},{\"text\":\"Matching bytes establish which representation was obtained. The digest does not verify the model’s physical scale, the pipe measurement method or a claim about the sound of 1610.\",\"title\":\"Keep the scientific question separate\"}],\"takeaway\":\"Fixity makes evidence identifiable; it does not independently validate the evidence’s interpretation.\",\"title\":\"What does the model’s SHA-256 prove?\",\"type\":\"example\"},{\"id\":\"successor\",\"text\":\"A correction creates a successor\",\"type\":\"heading\"},{\"text\":\"A living page can improve its explanation or correct a mistaken release description. The earlier edition should continue to identify what a reader could cite at that time. This makes it possible to distinguish an editorial correction from a changed research artifact, and to explain why two quotations or references differ.\",\"type\":\"p\"},{\"headers\":[\"Change\",\"Consequence for this website\"],\"rows\":[[\"Text, examples or resource descriptions\",\"Publish a new content edition and preserve earlier snapshots.\"],[\"Referenced diagram definitions\",\"Include the changed definitions in the new chapter fingerprint.\"],[\"Colour, typography or navigation styling\",\"The presentation can change without changing the structured chapter identity.\"],[\"An external resource changes\",\"The notebook citation remains fixed; verify the external version separately.\"]],\"type\":\"table\"},{\"boundary\":\"The dataset content version 0.5.0-rc.2, VAO format version 0.5.0 and website edition are separate version systems.\",\"caseLabel\":\"Cuntz\",\"concept\":\"Versioned citation separates the physical subject, the released research object and the explanation or derived artifact actually used.\",\"evidence\":\"Illustrative scenario\",\"expanded\":false,\"id\":\"cuntz-citation\",\"scenario\":\"A reader uses the notebook’s model to discuss a geometry, while another uses the 1281 mm workbook observation. Their references should identify different evidence even though both concern Cuntz.\",\"sources\":[{\"detail\":\"Published manifest: identities, measurement observations, realization digests, profiles and rights. Exact examples checked against this release.\",\"href\":\"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22151203\",\"label\":\"Cuntz Positiv · VAO 0.5.0-rc.2\"},{\"detail\":\"The standard contract is separate from the Cuntz dataset content version 0.5.0-rc.2.\",\"href\":\"https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22214248\",\"label\":\"VAO Standard 0.5.0\"}],\"steps\":[{\"text\":\"Use version DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22151203 for the inspected dataset. Record the specific realization or observation, rather than citing only the project community.\",\"title\":\"Identify the release\"},{\"text\":\"For the web preview, retain the derivative’s digest and transformation note. For the observation, identify the pipe, property, source cell and workbook realization.\",\"title\":\"Identify what was used\"},{\"text\":\"Use “Cite this page” for the notebook’s fixed edition. Its fingerprint identifies the explanation; it does not replace the source dataset or model fingerprint.\",\"title\":\"Cite the explanation separately\"}],\"takeaway\":\"A citation chain lets a reader recover both the evidence and the interpretation.\",\"title\":\"Which Cuntz identifier belongs in a citation?\",\"type\":\"example\"},{\"id\":\"verify-record\",\"text\":\"Verify a downloaded citation record\",\"type\":\"heading\"},{\"label\":\"Python standard library · save the downloaded metadata as citation.json\",\"text\":\"import hashlib\\nimport json\\nfrom pathlib import Path\\n\\nrecord = json.loads(Path(\\\"citation.json\\\").read_text(encoding=\\\"utf-8\\\"))\\npayload = record[\\\"canonicalPayload\\\"].encode(\\\"utf-8\\\")\\nactual = hashlib.sha256(payload).hexdigest()\\nif actual != record[\\\"sha256\\\"]:\\n raise SystemExit(\\\"Content fingerprint does not match\\\")\\nprint(\\\"Verified:\\\", record[\\\"edition\\\"], actual)\",\"type\":\"code\"},{\"text\":\"Hash the supplied canonicalPayload string exactly, without pretty-printing it or converting its line endings. The structured payload is also provided for inspection. The comparison verifies consistency with the expected digest in that record; independently retained metadata or an archived copy is needed if you want a reference beyond the current host.\",\"type\":\"p\"},{\"id\":\"preservation-beyond-site\",\"text\":\"Preservation extends beyond the website\",\"type\":\"heading\"},{\"text\":\"Versioned local URLs and checksums make these notebooks citable and inspectable, but continued access still depends on hosting and retained editions. A separately archived release could provide an additional preservation location. No notebook DOI or independent repository deposit is implied until such a deposit has actually been made.\",\"type\":\"p\"},{\"items\":[{\"href\":\"/editions/2026-09/\",\"label\":\"Browse the September 2026 edition\"},{\"href\":\"/notebooks/standards/citing/\",\"label\":\"How to cite a page\"}],\"type\":\"links\"}],\"intro\":\"The living notebook and its fixed editions serve different purposes.\",\"slug\":\"versions\",\"sources\":[],\"title\":\"A page can change. Its edition should not.\"},\"date\":\"2026-09-26\",\"edition\":\"2026-09-r6\",\"figures\":{}}", "payload": { "edition": "2026-09-r6", "date": "2026-09-26", "book": { "slug": "standards", "title": "Standards & citation", "number": "08" }, "chapter": { "slug": "versions", "title": "A page can change. Its edition should not.", "intro": "The living notebook and its fixed editions serve different purposes.", "blocks": [ { "type": "links", "items": [ { "label": "Learn this through the Cuntz organ", "href": "/notebooks/standards/cuntz/", "detail": "A continuous worked example: readable explanations, exact records and the limits of each claim." } ] }, { "type": "p", "text": "The ordinary notebook address points to the current explanatory text. An edition address includes a named snapshot and continues to serve that snapshot’s content when the living notebook is revised." }, { "type": "heading", "text": "What is preserved", "id": "preserved" }, { "type": "list", "items": [ "The notebook and chapter identity.", "The chapter introduction, text, figures and structured content.", "The reference list and its recorded resource links.", "The edition date and a SHA-256 content fingerprint." ] }, { "type": "heading", "text": "Checking a citation", "id": "checking" }, { "type": "p", "text": "Download the page’s citation metadata to retrieve the canonical JSON payload and the expected SHA-256 value. Recomputing the digest of that payload checks content identity. It cannot establish the truth of the content or the continued availability of an external source." }, { "type": "example", "id": "cuntz-fixity", "title": "What does the model’s SHA-256 prove?", "concept": "A checksum is a fingerprint calculated from bytes. Fixity checking compares that fingerprint with a trusted expected value to detect changed or mismatched files.", "scenario": "The published GLB source for this notebook has SHA-256 beginning 19527c2188b08d85. The display derivative has a different digest because its texture and encoding were changed.", "steps": [ { "title": "Compare like with like", "text": "Check the complete source GLB digest against the exact source realization. Compare the website derivative against its own expected digest, not against the source GLB’s digest." }, { "title": "Notice byte-changing edits", "text": "A texture conversion or mesh encoding change produces a different file identity. Even reformatting a JSON manifest can change its exact-byte hash without changing its parsed meaning." }, { "title": "Keep the scientific question separate", "text": "Matching bytes establish which representation was obtained. The digest does not verify the model’s physical scale, the pipe measurement method or a claim about the sound of 1610." } ], "takeaway": "Fixity makes evidence identifiable; it does not independently validate the evidence’s interpretation.", "boundary": "This website verifies the model’s expected byte length and full SHA-256 before passing it to the renderer. That is a file-identity check, not a VAO conformance report.", "sources": [ { "label": "Cuntz Positiv · VAO 0.5.0-rc.2", "href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22151203", "detail": "Published manifest: identities, measurement observations, realization digests, profiles and rights. Exact examples checked against this release." }, { "label": "VAO Standard 0.5.0", "href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22214248", "detail": "The standard contract is separate from the Cuntz dataset content version 0.5.0-rc.2." } ], "expanded": false, "caseLabel": "Cuntz", "evidence": "Released record" }, { "type": "heading", "text": "A correction creates a successor", "id": "successor" }, { "type": "p", "text": "A living page can improve its explanation or correct a mistaken release description. The earlier edition should continue to identify what a reader could cite at that time. This makes it possible to distinguish an editorial correction from a changed research artifact, and to explain why two quotations or references differ." }, { "type": "table", "headers": [ "Change", "Consequence for this website" ], "rows": [ [ "Text, examples or resource descriptions", "Publish a new content edition and preserve earlier snapshots." ], [ "Referenced diagram definitions", "Include the changed definitions in the new chapter fingerprint." ], [ "Colour, typography or navigation styling", "The presentation can change without changing the structured chapter identity." ], [ "An external resource changes", "The notebook citation remains fixed; verify the external version separately." ] ] }, { "type": "example", "id": "cuntz-citation", "title": "Which Cuntz identifier belongs in a citation?", "concept": "Versioned citation separates the physical subject, the released research object and the explanation or derived artifact actually used.", "scenario": "A reader uses the notebook’s model to discuss a geometry, while another uses the 1281 mm workbook observation. Their references should identify different evidence even though both concern Cuntz.", "steps": [ { "title": "Identify the release", "text": "Use version DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22151203 for the inspected dataset. Record the specific realization or observation, rather than citing only the project community." }, { "title": "Identify what was used", "text": "For the web preview, retain the derivative’s digest and transformation note. For the observation, identify the pipe, property, source cell and workbook realization." }, { "title": "Cite the explanation separately", "text": "Use “Cite this page” for the notebook’s fixed edition. Its fingerprint identifies the explanation; it does not replace the source dataset or model fingerprint." } ], "takeaway": "A citation chain lets a reader recover both the evidence and the interpretation.", "boundary": "The dataset content version 0.5.0-rc.2, VAO format version 0.5.0 and website edition are separate version systems.", "sources": [ { "label": "Cuntz Positiv · VAO 0.5.0-rc.2", "href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22151203", "detail": "Published manifest: identities, measurement observations, realization digests, profiles and rights. Exact examples checked against this release." }, { "label": "VAO Standard 0.5.0", "href": "https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22214248", "detail": "The standard contract is separate from the Cuntz dataset content version 0.5.0-rc.2." } ], "expanded": false, "caseLabel": "Cuntz", "evidence": "Illustrative scenario" }, { "type": "heading", "text": "Verify a downloaded citation record", "id": "verify-record" }, { "type": "code", "label": "Python standard library · save the downloaded metadata as citation.json", "text": "import hashlib\nimport json\nfrom pathlib import Path\n\nrecord = json.loads(Path(\"citation.json\").read_text(encoding=\"utf-8\"))\npayload = record[\"canonicalPayload\"].encode(\"utf-8\")\nactual = hashlib.sha256(payload).hexdigest()\nif actual != record[\"sha256\"]:\n raise SystemExit(\"Content fingerprint does not match\")\nprint(\"Verified:\", record[\"edition\"], actual)" }, { "type": "p", "text": "Hash the supplied canonicalPayload string exactly, without pretty-printing it or converting its line endings. The structured payload is also provided for inspection. The comparison verifies consistency with the expected digest in that record; independently retained metadata or an archived copy is needed if you want a reference beyond the current host." }, { "type": "heading", "text": "Preservation extends beyond the website", "id": "preservation-beyond-site" }, { "type": "p", "text": "Versioned local URLs and checksums make these notebooks citable and inspectable, but continued access still depends on hosting and retained editions. A separately archived release could provide an additional preservation location. No notebook DOI or independent repository deposit is implied until such a deposit has actually been made." }, { "type": "links", "items": [ { "label": "Browse the September 2026 edition", "href": "/editions/2026-09/" }, { "label": "How to cite a page", "href": "/notebooks/standards/citing/" } ] } ], "sources": [] }, "figures": {} } }