Consider further detailing the classes of products for the conformance model

Solid Protocol's #conformance model identifies servers and clients as the kinds of products ( https://solidproject.org/TR/protocol#classes-of-products ) that will implement the specification ( as originally clarified by https://github.com/solid/specification/pull/478 alongside https://github.com/solid/vocab/pull/84 ). See also https://solidproject.org/TR/notifications-protocol#classes-of-products as another spec with its own classes of products.

Servers and clients is just one generalisation. The Solid Protocol normatively requires other specifications with their own conformance classes of products.

Identifying other meaningful generalisations of the classes of products opens up a new space in that different conforming products can be implemented by different parties and codebases, modularised and used in the Solid ecosystem, exchanged in a marketplace, or searched in stores.

Another generalisation of the conformance classes in the Solid Protocol could also be the following for example:

• server (or responding agent)
• client (or producer or consumer)
• producer of content
• content
• consumer
• storage
• producer of instructions
• processor

Besides the definitions and classifications, conformance clauses need to be updated to refer to specific concepts, e.g., is it the server or the storage product that is the subject of that requirement that needs to conform?

Meaningful conformance classes of products and cross linking is expected in all Solid specifications.

Start with the Solid Protocol and Notifications Protocol “classes of products” sections, then review specification PRs #478 and vocab PR #84. Define meaningful shared conformance classes and update the affected conformance clauses and cross-links across Solid specifications; completion requires agreement on the classifications and their normative usage.