Fast and accurant information is the key to success in our increasingly competitive world. During the last few decades there has been an explosion in the field of electronically communicated data, but despite this the printed page is still the most effficient way to communicate large amounts of information. What modern communicators now need are efficient techniaues for the electronic interchange of bulk text. Recognizing this need the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has begun preparing a suite of standards for the electronic interchange of text. The first of these standards defines the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) that can be used to code a wide variety of texts in a way that is independent of the input and output devices being used. The Standard (ISO 8879) is, however, highly technical and its formal definitions need clear and simple explanations to enable an author to make full use of SGML. This readable book provides a detailed and a practical user's guide to the language, showing authors how SGML can be used to prepare an electronic version of a manuscript in a form that is suitable for output on a wide range of printing devices froma lineprinter to an advanced phototypesetter. This book has itself been produced using SGML, and the tag set used for its production is fully described in an Appendix.