Bike Week

Not quite a decade ago I edited text for my first IHE Profile.  That text was originally authored in support of the metadata used in Cross-Enterprise Document Sharing (XDS). I spend many hours on that content, reworking it from its original structure, and adding numerous examples.

Since that time, many IHE profiles have made use of the metadata defined by XDS, sometimes making small adjustments to accommodate the profile requirements.  These "minor" adjustments, as well as the many Change Proposals incorporated over time, led the contents of Section 4 getting even harder and harder to comprehend, especially for those not implementing the profile for which this section was originally written.

For the past two years, a team of brave, dedicated people have been restructuring volume 3, section 4 to add clarity and make it easier for implementers to read and comprehend. They have added examples, explanations, context, sample code, diagrams, and reduced ambiguity wherever possible and have grown the section from 20 to over a 100 pages in size in order to best support the implementer community.  

That additional 80 pages represents a good deal of data that was hidden away in historical context, implementation experience, or simply locked away somewhere in the brains of the original committee members.  But it also includes better explanations, great examples, and awesome UML diagrams. The end result is something well worth looking at.  Normally we’d have them all show up at a sushi bar, or a beach or mountain resort for a celebratory party, but given the distributed nature of the team, that would be a bit difficult.

In that spirit, I delighted to present to you -  The Redoc Dozen (in alphabetical order):

Bill Majurski: For getting the redocumentation effort started, and being patient and supportive when it veered off in a different direction.
Dave Pyke: For diving into the deep end to help with the editing and cat-herding when it got really busy preparing for public comment.
Derrick Evans: For being the quiet voice of encouragement, and for giving us so much time at face to face meetings when we begged for it!
Elliot Silver: For reading through over a hundred page document over and over, and single-handedly identifying more opportunities for improvement than everyone else combined.
Jeremy Huiskamp: For jumping in feet first out of the blue to write XML code, provide implementer’s insights, and put in more hours than most seasoned volunteers ever do, and for doing it with unfailing cheerful enthusiasm!
John Moehrke: For providing context and content on topics where the rest of the group was silent.
Karen Witting: For being the brains and inspiration behind much of the content and reorganization.
Lynn Felhofer: For practical insights and contributions when the rest of the team was too sick of it to look at it anymore.
Marke Sinke: For providing comments and insight and his incredible patience for comment resolution.
Nancy Ramirez: For keeping us on schedule, making sure we have time to meet, and putting up with so much change and last-minute requests!
Rob Horn: For providing historical content and rationale, and for putting in so many evening hours to make sure CPs and other items got done right.
Sylvie Colas: For doing all the UML and updating it over and over, and for being our ebRIM source of truth.

And for their efforts, I proudly award them The first ever... 

Ad Hoc Bike Week Award

for making my life easier, and therefore more fun.