Proper maps of locales (Q1318788)

In a celebrated monograph [Mem. Am. Math. Soc. 309 (1984; Zbl 0541.18002)], \textit{A. Joyal} and \textit{M. Tierney} established a descent theory for open maps of locales. Their main tool for doing this was a careful analysis of the relationship between frames (the algebraic dual of locales) and complete join-semilattices: they showed that there was a useful analogy with the relationship between rings and modules, which enabled descent techniques from module theory to be brought to bear on the new situation. It was apparent from an early stage that there should be an analogous descent theory for proper maps, but (despite the efforts of several people, including the reviewer) there seemed to be considerable difficulty in establishing the basic theory of proper maps firmly enough to support this -- even the correct definition of properness for maps of locales was a matter of some doubt. In this beautiful paper, the author at last shows that all the ``sensible'' definitions of properness are equivalent, and that they do support a descent theory like that for proper maps. Moreover, he does this in a way which is formally ``dual'' to the Joyal-Tierney theory, by exploiting the relationship between frames and the preframes introduced by \textit{B. Banaschewski} [Commentat. Math. Univ. Carol. 29, No. 4, 647-656 (1988; Zbl 0667.54009)].