----- Original Message ----- From: "Yigong Liu" <yigongliu@gmail.com> To: <boost@lists.boost.org> Hi Yigong, Hans, Stjepan... Good to hear about all the "marshalling" activity out there. Sounds like we have been treading similar paths. I have grumbled about the tools and techniques available in this area for years. Recently I was cornered into a lot of distributed software development and re-discovered how hard it all is. I now have a wish-list for tools and techniques I might consider for marshalling in the future. Here are a few; * single definition of external representation (i.e. serialization) for persistence and network messaging purposes * multiple encodings (e.g. readable, fast or secure) * purely async software at the lower levels, i.e. only an application thread may block on a sync RPC * multiple program and threading models (e.g. simple server like an FTP server vs a complex program that initiates and accepts multiple connections with different encodings and protocols) * formalized protocols, i.e. an RPC protocol might have CALL, RETURN and EXCEPTION entries. * object-based message routing (e.g. a (local) object originates a message and a (possibly remote) object is the target) The scope of this list get daunting quickly. What is the scope for you guys?