間-spec

Formal specification documents for the did:ma decentralized identifier method, intended for use with W3C DID method registration.

did:ma is a self-sovereign identity method built on IPFS/IPNS for identity resolution, CBOR/dag-cbor for wire encoding, Ed25519 for signatures, and iroh for peer-to-peer transport. Every entity has a globally resolvable DID. Every interaction is a signed message. There is no shared state, no central server, no synchronous return channel.

Architecture — three layers

The specifications are organized in layers. Each layer builds on the one below it, and each is useful on its own. The lower the layer, the fewer requirements it imposes.

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  clients          zion (browser), zscheme (CLI)            │
│                   → zscheme/                               │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  runtime          ma-runtime: a full actor framework       │
│                   → runtime/                               │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  core             recommended interop conventions:         │
│                   services, message types, ACL             │
│                   → core/                                  │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│  identity         did:ma method + message envelope         │
│                   → did-ma-spec-v1.md (this directory)     │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

• Identity (root). did:ma Method Specification and the Messaging Format are the only shared contracts every implementation must agree on. You can use did:ma as a plain DID method with signed messaging and ignore everything else in this repository.
• Core (core/). Recommended standards: service protocols (RPC, inbox, IPFS publishing), message types (chat, emote), the ma DID document fields, and the ACL model. Nothing here is required to use did:ma as a DID — but they are required to interoperate with a runtime, and strongly recommended for any implementation that wants to talk to others.
• Runtime (runtime/). The normative specification of one framework built on the layers below: ma-runtime, a full actor framework geared towards multi-user text-based virtual reality. Entities, kinds, plugins, standard actors, avatars, houses, schedules, CRUD.
• Clients (zscheme/). zion and zscheme are clients — users of the framework, not part of it. This layer specifies the embedded Scheme evaluator they share.

Where should I look?

You are…	Read
A user of zion / zscheme	The zscheme handbook and reference — no spec reading required
A client developer	core/, then zscheme/
A runtime developer	runtime/ and core/ — build on the ma-core Rust crate
A DID method implementor	did-ma-spec-v1.md and core/ma-messaging-format-v1.md only

Document Map

Identity and Messaging

These documents define the did:ma identity layer — DID syntax, document format, and base message format. They are intentionally minimal: the DID document and the message envelope are the only shared contracts every implementation must agree on.

• did:ma Method Specification — Method syntax (did:ma:<ipns-key>#<fragment>), DID document structure, Multikey verification methods, MultiformatSignature2023 proof type (Ed25519 over BLAKE3, multicodec-prefixed), dag-cbor serialization, CRUD operations, verifiable data registry, security and privacy considerations.
• Messaging Format — Signed CBOR message envelope, foundational message types (vnd.ma.doc, vnd.ma.broadcast, vnd.ma.message), encryption envelope, replay protection, correlation semantics.

Core conventions — core/

Field extensions, service protocols, message types, and the ACL model. Recommended standards — not required for plain DID use, required for runtime interoperability. See core/README.md.

Runtime — runtime/

The ma-runtime actor framework: manifest, entities and kinds, standard actors, avatar and house, schedules, CRUD service. See runtime/README.md.

Clients — zscheme/

The embedded Scheme evaluator shared by the zion and zscheme clients. See zscheme/README.md.

Status

Version 1.0.0 Candidate Recommendation. Prepared for W3C DID method registration review.

Aligned with W3C DID v1.1 (@context, media type, Multikey naming).