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Product Consumer’s Guide

This guide is intended for product consumers: individuals and teams who need to understand, trust, and use products described by PDS (deployment descriptors) and PROD (semantic descriptions).
Where the Spec Creator’s Guide explains how to author specifications, this guide explains how to interpret them.

1. Purpose of the Guide​

  • Help consumers interpret PDS and PROD consistently.
  • Enable trustworthy adoption of products across domains.
  • Provide checklists for consumers to evaluate product descriptors.
  • Clarify roles: what business users, technical users, and governance/audit stakeholders should look for.

2. Interpreting PDS (Deployment Blueprint)​

PDS describes how a product is delivered and instantiated. As a consumer, focus on:

  • Inputs and Outputs: What data, resources, or materials must you provide, and what will you receive? (e.g., JSON payloads, training datasets, electricity, raw materials, packaged goods, storage devices).
  • Interfaces: Which protocols and formats are supported (e.g., REST, gRPC, CSV, JSON, USB-C, Bluetooth, power connector, physical delivery channel such as phone or letter).
  • Deployment Context: Where and how is the product delivered or hosted? (e.g., cloud runtime, on-prem Kubernetes, shipping destination, installation environment, operating temperature range).
  • Service Levels: What SLAs, latency targets, or reliability commitments are documented?
  • Versioning: Which version are you consuming (Draft, Published, Deprecated, Retired)?
  • Look for HealthIndicators (uptime, freshness, drift, MTBF) to assess operational readiness.

🔎 Tip: Treat the PDS as the operational contract — it tells you how to connect, what to expect, and what guarantees apply.

3. Interpreting PROD (Semantic Blueprint)​

PROD describes what the product is and why it matters. As a consumer, focus on:

  • Purpose and Meaning: What business or analytical problem does the product solve?
  • Context: How does it relate to other products or processes in your ecosystem?
  • Ownership and Accountability: Who is responsible, and how can they be contacted?
  • Governance and Compliance: Are there policies, certifications, or risk classifications attached?
  • Evaluation and Metrics: What quality, fairness, or performance evaluations exist?
  • Look for Purpose (is this product fit-for-purpose?), Classification (how it’s categorized), and any Certification records that affect use.

🔎 Tip: Treat the PROD as the semantic contract — it tells you the purpose, scope, and trustworthiness of the product.

4. Combining PDS and PROD​

Consumers should always look at both halves together:

  • PDS = How to use the product
  • PROD = Why and when to use the product

For example:

  • AI Product: AIPDS may tell you how to query a model endpoint; AIPROD tells you whether the model is trained fairly, complies with AI risk regulations, and is suitable for your use case.
  • Data Product: DPDS may define available SQL endpoints; DPROD tells you the meaning of each dataset, lineage, and governance obligations.

5. Consumer Checklists​

Business Consumers​

  • Does the product align with my business goals?
  • Are ownership, accountability, and contracts clear?
  • Do the metrics/evaluations support trust in decision-making?
  • Are service levels acceptable (e.g., SLA uptime for APIs, warranty coverage for devices, delivery guarantees for physical goods)?
  • Is the Purpose compatible with my intended use?

Governance: “[ ] Are required Certifications present and valid?”

Technical Consumers​

  • Do the input/output ports match my systems? (e.g., JSON vs. XML, USB-C vs. SATA)
  • Are deployment dependencies acceptable? (e.g., container runtime, installation environment, power requirements)
  • Is the version stable and supported? (e.g., API v2.0 vs. deprecated v1.0, hardware revision ID, firmware version)
  • Are interfaces clearly specified for integration? (e.g., REST endpoint, Bluetooth profile, postal delivery channel)
  • Are HealthIndicators within acceptable thresholds?

Governance / Audit Consumers​

  • Are policy and risk profiles documented? (e.g., GDPR compliance, product safety certification, ISO/IEC standards)
  • Does the product conform to external specifications? (e.g., DPDS, AIPDS, PHPDS, SWPDS)
  • Are provenance and lineage sufficient for audit/compliance? (e.g., dataset lineage, manufacturing batch traceability, shipping logs)
  • Are obligations and constraints clear? (e.g., data residency, storage device disposal policy, warranty expiration terms)
  • Are required Certifications present and valid?

📌 Note on Examples
The examples provided (e.g., JSON vs. XML, USB-C vs. SATA, GDPR vs. ISO standards) are illustrative only.
They are not meant to be restrictive or exhaustive.
The Base Product Specification (BPS) framework is intentionally domain-agnostic —
spec authors and consumers are free to adapt PDS and PROD descriptors to the level of detail and specificity most appropriate for their product domain.

6. Worked Example​

  • PDS (AI Product): AIPDS shows the REST endpoint, required authentication, input schema, expected latency.
  • PROD (AI Product): AIPROD shows that the model is for credit scoring, is classified as "High Risk" per EU AI Act, includes a bias evaluation, and names the responsible party.

🔎 The consumer knows how to use the product and whether they should trust it.

7. Conclusion​

Product consumers should approach PDS and PROD as two complementary views:

  • PDS = operational usability
  • PROD = semantic and governance clarity

By reading both, consumers can make informed, responsible, and confident decisions about product adoption.