Using URLs as property names provides a globally unique property namespace. Since property names can be URLs, which have a domain name as a component of the URL, property names can be given uniqueness without central registration by using URL property names chosen from within a domain whose name is controlled by the party defining the property. Using XML to encode the value of properties provides three major benefits. First is extensibility. Since all content within XML is encoded between start and end tags, it is easy to add additional elements to a property by inserting new tagged content.
Internationalization is the second major benefit.
Version management can also support collaboration by allowing two or more authors to work on the same artifact in parallel tracks. Configuration management tracks versioned collections of versioned artifacts, an important capability for reverting to previously released software packages, or for tracking many resources simultaneously. A new working group, building on initial design work performed by the WebDAV working group, is currently being formed in the IETF to develop a protocol for Web versioning and configuration management. Referential resources act like symbolic links in file systems, while ordered collections maintain a client-specified ordering of resources in a collection without private agreements. The ability to limit the access rights of a given authenticated principal on a given artifact, remotely, via the Internet.