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Required Sections
§4.2.1 Introduction chapter
Every PSD MUST have a 1-introduction/ chapter containing at minimum:
| Section | File | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | 1-scope.md |
What the specification covers and does not cover. |
| Terminology | 2-terminology.md |
Defined terms, or delegation to terms defined in other PSDs. |
| Conventions | 3-conventions.md |
RFC 2119 declaration, pseudocode notation, byte order, string encoding, and other notational conventions. |
| Prior Art | 4-prior-art.md |
Parity mappings, reference material, and design influences. |
Additional introduction sections MAY be added after the required four.
§4.2.1.1 Scope
The scope section MUST list what the specification covers and what it does not cover. Items excluded from scope SHOULD identify which specification or subsystem covers them.
§4.2.1.2 Terminology
The terminology section MUST define terms specific to this specification. Terms already defined in another PSD MAY be delegated by reference rather than redefined:
Terms defined in PSD-006 (LCS, RSI, hive, source, key, value,
layer) are used here with the same meaning and are not redefined.
§4.2.1.3 Conventions
The conventions section MUST declare conformance to PSD-001 and MUST declare the use of RFC 2119 normative keywords. It SHOULD document any notational conventions used in the specification, including:
- Pseudocode notation (see §5.3)
- Byte order (if the specification defines binary formats)
- String encoding (if the specification defines string handling)
§4.2.1.4 Prior art
The prior art section MUST document the design influences, reference material, and compatibility considerations for the specification. The content varies by specification:
- For specifications with a clear predecessor (e.g., Windows Security Model): parity mappings documenting what is faithful, what diverges, and what is omitted.
- For specifications based on external standards (e.g., RFCs, ISO standards): which standards, which parts adopted, which parts rejected.
- For novel specifications: design influences, alternative approaches considered, and rationale for the chosen design.
4-parity.md or 4-compatibility.md for this section. Both names are acceptable -- the requirement is for the content, not the filename. New specifications SHOULD use 4-prior-art.md for consistency.§4.2.2 Substantive chapters
Every PSD MUST have at least one substantive chapter beyond the introduction. The number and organisation of substantive chapters is at the author's discretion.
§4.2.3 Appendices
Appendix chapters MUST be numbered contiguously after the last substantive chapter and SHOULD use the naming convention N-appendix-a/, N+1-appendix-b/, etc.
§4.2.4 Reference tables
Specifications that define registry schemas, constant sets, configuration parameters, or other enumerable artifacts SHOULD include a reference appendix that consolidates all such items with back-references to the normative section where each is defined.
Each entry in a reference table SHOULD include at minimum the item identifier (key path, constant name, etc.) and a § citation to the section that defines its semantics. Additional columns (type, default value, description) are at the author's discretion.