Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

Open Distributed Processing
     
         (ODP) An attempt to standardise an {OSI}
        {application layer} communications architecture.  ODP is a
        natural progression from {OSI}, broadening the target of
        standardisation from the point of interconnection to the end
        system behaviour.  The objective of ODP is to enable the
        construction of {distributed system}s in a multi-vendor
        environment through the provision of a general architectural
        framework that such systems must conform to.  One of the
        cornerstones of this framework is a model of multiple
        viewpoints which enables different participants to observe a
        system from a suitable perspective and a suitable level of
        {abstraction}.
     
        (1995-03-10)