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• [December 31, 2002]   Connexions Markup Language (CNXML) Used for Modular Instructional Materials.    An interdisciplinary project at Rice University is developing the Connexions Markup Language (CNXML) as part of the Connexions Project. CNXML is "a lightweight XML markup language designed primarily for marking up educational content. The language is concerned with the structure and semantic content of the information and encourages separation of content and presentation. Connexions is an open-source educational technology project that enhances teaching and learning by (1) facilitating collaborative development of educational content in a broad range of disciplinary communities, (2) providing free access to distributed repositories of educational content and curricula, and (3) empowering diverse cultural communities to join in the development of knowledge. Two primary components of the Connexions system are a Content Commons repository of collaboratively developed material, and an open-source software toolset that allows users to exploit the materials in the repository for their needs. Connexions features a synergistic mix of both software and content, and our solutions involving community development, modularization, XML markup, editorial lenses, and intellectual property cater directly to the needs of the academic community. The Connexions Project is being developed in collaboation with MIT's Open Knowledge Initiative and with the Creative Commons Project. All Connexions software and tools will be open-source, available free-of-charge." [Full context]

• [December 28, 2002]   GEDCOM XML Specification Supports XML Encoding of Genealogical Data.    A beta version of the GEDCOM XML Specification Release 6.0 has been published, including a chapter dedicated to the GEDCOM XML Document Type Definition. GEDCOM (Genealogical Data Communication) is widely considered the de facto standard for structured genealogical information, being designed "to provide a flexible, uniform format for exchanging computerized genealogical data." Having evolved over fifteen years, GEDCOM XML uses Unicode instead of the 8-bit ANSEL character set. It makes use of unidirectional (ID - IDREF) links that can be specified in only one way instead of the GEDCOM bidirectional linking mechanism. [Full context]

• [December 26, 2002]   NYSE Market Data Group and FISD Release VRXML Schema for Billing and Reporting.    The version 1.0 specification for Vendor Reporting Extensible Markup Language (VRXML) has been published on the VRXML website. The release includes an XML Schema, sample document, and UML diagrams for the VRML conceptual model. VRXML 'XML for Market Data Billing' is "an XML-based interchange format and common data dictionary on the fields needed for market data billing, reporting and inventory management. The initial draft was developed by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to improve the quality, timeliness, and efficiency of reporting information from vendors. The objective of VRXML is to define and normalize all of the data elements required throughout the billing and reporting information chain with the objective of enabling all segments to produce, transmit, receive, and process invoices and reports in a common XML format. FISD (Financial Information Services Division of the Software and Information Industry Association - SIIA) has now assumed ownership and maintenance of the specification and is actively exploring its extension to support the full range of industry requirements associated with billing and reporting. FISD members support the migration to an industry-wide XML reporting format and have confirmed their interest in using VRXML as a component of the overall billing and reporting initiative." [Full context]

• [December 24, 2002]   Open GIS Consortium Issues RFC for Web Coverage Service Implementation Specification.    The Open GIS Consortium OGC) has published a Request for Comment on a proposal for technologies and needed interfaces required for OpenGIS Web Coverage Service (WCS) Implementation Specification. The specification document "explains how WCS serves to describe, request, and deliver multi-dimensional coverage data over the World Wide Web. WCS emphasizes 'simple' coverages (defined on some regular, rectangular grid or tesselation of space) and anticipates other coverage types defined in the OpenGIS Abstract Specification. This includes pixel and point grids, including aerial and satellite images and digital terrain models. Web Coverage Service provides access to intact (unrendered) geospatial information, as needed for client-side rendering, multi-valued coverages, and input into scientific models for advanced rendering and visualization clients." [Full context]

• [December 20, 2002]   US Library of Congress Releases Encoded Archival Description DTD Version 2002.    A posting from Randall K. Barry (U.S. Library of Congress) announces the release of the EAD DTD Version 2002. The Encoded Archival Description (EAD) standard is used by digital libraries to create machine-readable finding aids. Archival finding aids are "descriptive bibliography or metadata tools which take the form of inventories, registers, indexes, guides, and similar resources created by museums, libraries, repositories, and other kinds of archives." The Version 2002 EAD DTD "is designed to function as both an SGML and XML DTD. It conforms to SGML/XML specifications and has been thoroughly tested using a wide variety of existing SGML/XML software. To be used as an XML DTD, 'switches' have been included in the DTD for turning off features used only in SGML applications, and turning on features used in XML applications." Complete documentation for use of the EAD DTD is provided in the form of a Tag Library. The EAD DTD Version 2002 has been prepared by the Encoded Archival Description Working Group of the Society of American Archivists and the Network Development and MARC Standards Office of the Library of Congress. The MARC Standards Office (NDMSO) acts as the maintenance agency for the EAD standard. At least 75 institutions are registered as users of the EAD DTD. [Full context]

• [December 19, 2002]   UN/CEFACT ebXML Core Components Technical Specification Approved for Implementation Verification.    The UN/CEFACT Techniques and Methodology Group (TMG) recently approved the version 1.90 UN/CEFACT ebXML Core Components Technical Specification for Step 6 'Implementation Verification' as defined in the UN/CEFACT/TRADE/22 Open Development Process for Technical Specifications. The Step 6 verification review period "is the most critical part of the development process as problems and issues are identified; the editing group collects the problems and issues identified from the implementors in order to further refine and improve the specification." According to a posting from Mark Crawford, Editor of the UN/CEFACT Core Components specification, "the OASIS Universal Business Language (UBL), OAG, EAN-UCC, SWIFT, UN/CEFACT, ANSI ASC X12, and a host of other standards organizations are already using this new [Core Components] approach as the basis for building interoperable XML business standards; the Department of the Navy has included aspects of this specification in its XML Developers Guide, and it is referenced in the Federal XML Developers Guide as well." CCTS addresses the "lack of information interoperability between applications in the e-business arena. Traditionally, standards for the exchange of business data have been focused on static message definitions that have not enabled a sufficient degree of interoperability or flexibility. CCTS seeks to define a flexible and interoperable way of standardizing Business Semantics. The UN/CEFACT ebXML Core Component solution described in the CCTS specification presents a methodology for developing a common set of semantic building blocks that represent the general types of business data in use today and provides for the creation of new business vocabularies and restructuring of existing business vocabularies." [Full context]

• [December 18, 2002]   Microsoft and IBM Publish Six New Web Services Security and Policy Specifications.    Six new Web services specifications "aimed at advancing security capabilities and streamlining business policy for organizations implementing Web services" have been published by Microsoft and IBM, together with authorship contributions from BEA, RSA, and SAP. This second wave of security and policy specifications includes WS-SecurityPolicy, WS-Trust, WS-SecureConversation, WS-Policy, WS-PolicyAttachment, and WS-PolicyAssertions. "Using broadly accepted standards and specifications around Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), security, transactions and discovery, the new specifications represent the next step in delivering a comprehensive model of advanced Web services capabilities that integrate currently available technologies with the evolving requirements of emerging applications. IBM, Microsoft and industry partners are now delivering against a previously announced road map with six new specifications. Providing a framework that is extensible and flexible and maximizes existing investments in a Web services infrastructure, these new specifications make it easier to apply business policy and implement security for a wider range of applications." [Full context]

• [December 17, 2002]   W3C Publishes User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 as a Recommendation.    W3C has announced the release of the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 specification as a Recommendation, together with a companion document Techniques for User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0. Written mainly for software developers, UAAG 1.0 "addresses requirements such as accessibility of the user interface, rendering of accessibility information, and user choice in configuring browsers and media players. These guidelines also address interoperability of mainstream browsers and multimedia players with assistive technologies used by people with disabilities. UAAG 1.0 is third in a complementary set of Web accessibility guidelines which already include the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 (WCAG 1.0) and the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 (ATAG 1.0). All three guidelines (UAAG, WCAG, ATAG) have been developed by W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). Over the past five years WAI has become recognized as the leading international authority on Web accessibility, addressing accessibility issues for users with visual, auditory, physical, cognitive, and neurological disabilities through device-independent, multimodal design. Together these three WAI guidelines help Web developers deliver on the promise of a universal Web that is accessible to all. UAAG 1.0 addresses a variety of user agent types including HTML and XHTML browsers, multimedia players, graphics viewers, and assistive technologies. Software that conforms to UAAG 1.0 is expected to be more flexible, manageable, extensible, and beneficial to all users." [Full context]

• [December 17, 2002]   US National Coffee Association Creates XML Schemas for Global Trade.    In the interest of paperwork reduction, support of innovative trading relationships, and expeditious delivery of fresh coffee, the National Coffee Association of America has created XML Traffic Documents for the global coffee industry. In cooperation with ExImWare, Inc., NCA has developed "a set of XML formatted e-commerce documents for the Association's four coffee industry Standard Traffic Documents (Shipping Advice, Sample Order, Delivery Order and Invoice). In December 2001, NCA conducted a market survey that explored coffee industry's perception of where greater adoption of Internet technologies may benefit the trade; subsequently, supported by industry sponsorship, NCA has developed the draft coffee industry standard XML documents." NCA will present the XML Schemas to the trade in a January 2003 seminar. NCA anticipates that the use of coffee industry standard XML documents will promote more productive ways of generating and exchanging contract and traffic documents with suppliers and customers. [Full context]

• [December 16, 2002]   Creative Commons Project Offers RDF-Based Licenses for Rights Expression.    The Creative Commons Project has announced its first official product in the form of machine-readable copyright licenses which support a distributable, royalty-free, legally clear, XML-based mechanism for digital rights expression. Creative Commons licenses "allow copyright holders to easily inform others that their works are free for copying and other uses under specific conditions. The licenses cover several kinds of creative works, including websites, published scholarship, music, film, photography, literature, and courseware. Fundamental legal concepts that inspire Creative Commons are documented on the project website: the public domain, the commons, open content, and intellectual property conservancies. Creative Commons is working to provide simple RDF descriptions of its licenses. These descriptions will put the important points of the license in a way that makes it easy for machines to process and work from. Unlike Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology, which tries to restrict use of digital works, Creative Commons is providing ways to encourage permitted sharing and reuse of works." Users of the system select from a list of licenses or public domain dedications and receive support to express these declarations in three formats: "(1) a Commons Deed is a simple, plain-language summary of the license, with corresponding icons; (2) the Legal Code incorporates the fine print needed to fine-tune the copyright statements; (3) the Digital Code consists of a machine-readable translation of the license that helps search engines and other applications identify the work by its terms of use." [Full context]

• [December 11, 2002]   Sun Microsystems Contributes OpenOffice.org XML File Format Specification to TC.    A posting from Michael Brauer to the OASIS Open Office XML Format Technical Committee mailing list contains the OpenOffice.org XML file format specification and DTD files that Sun Microsystems, Inc. will contribute to the OASIS TC. The contribution will be discussed at the TC's first meeting on December 16, 2002. The XML specification consists of a 571-page OpenOffice.org XML File Format - Technical Reference Manual and 22 modularized XML DTD files. The design goal in the OpenOffice.org XML file format was to have a complete specification encompassing all OpenOffice.org components and to provide an open standard for office documents. The single XML format applies to a wide range of document types created by office tools. The specification is being made available to OASIS under a reciprocal Royalty-Free License, as explained in the communiqué. [Full context]

• [December 10, 2002]   Workflow Management Coalition Publishes XML Process Definition Language (XPDL) Version 1.0.    The Workflow Management Coalition (WfMC) has announced the release of its Workflow Standard XML Process Definition Language - XPDL 1.0. "Together with other WfMC standards, XPDL provides a framework for implementing business process management and workflow engines, and for designing, analyzing, and exchanging business processes. XPDL is the culmination of a fifteen-month effort by multiple vendors and users to provide a standard that satisfies the needs of diverse organizations. One of the key elements of the XPDL is its extensibility to handle information used by a variety of different tools. Based upon a limited number of entities that describe a workflow process definition ('Minimum Meta Model'), XPDL thus supports a number of differing approaches. The specification is intended for use by software vendors, system integrators, consultants and any other individual or organization concerned with the design, implementation, and analysis of business process management systems as well as with interoperability among workflow systems." [Full context]

• [December 10, 2002]   XML Encryption and Decryption Specifications Published as W3C Recommendations.    The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has announced the publication of XML Encryption Syntax and Processing and Decryption Transform for XML Signature as W3C Recommendations, signifying a "cross-industry agreement on an XML-based approach for securing XML data in a document. A W3C Recommendation indicates that a specification is stable, contributes to Web interoperability, and has been reviewed by the W3C Membership, who favor its widespread adoption." The Encryption document "specifies a process for encrypting data and representing the result in XML. The data may be arbitrary data (including an XML document), an XML element, or XML element content. The result of encrypting data is an XML Encryption element which contains or references the cipher data." The Decryption Recommendation "specifies an XML Signature 'decryption transform' that enables XML Signature applications to distinguish between those XML Encryption structures that were encrypted before signing (and must not be decrypted) and those that were encrypted after signing (and must be decrypted) for the signature to validate." [Full context]

• [December 09, 2002]   COSCA/NACM Joint Technology Committee Adopts LegalXML Electronic Court Filing Specifications.    A posting of 2002-12-08 from John M. Greacen to the OASIS LegalXML Electronic Court Filing TC announces that the COSCA/NACM Joint Technology Committee on 2002-12-05 adopted the TC's Electronic Court Filing Query and Response Standard and Electronic Court Filing 1.1 Proposed Standard XML specifications as Proposed Standards for public comment and experimental use. The LegalXML TC's proposed specifications are vetted through the US National Consortium for State Court Automation Standards, a subcommittee of the Joint Technology Committee of the Conference of State Court Administrators (COSCA) and National Association for Court Management (NACM). The National Consortium further vets the Technical Committee's recommendations through a 'Joint Standards Development (JSD) Team' comprised of representatives of state and local courts and private sector service providers interested in and knowledgeable about electronic court filing." The draft Electronic Court Filing 1.1 Proposed Standard provides an XML DTD required for Court Filing, updated in light of agreements specified in 'Principles of XML Development for Justice and Public Safety.' The Electronic Court Filing Query and Response Standard "describes the metadata that would be required for electronic retrieval of information available from a court that complies with this standard and to detail the structure that information would have. It also supplies a set of standard queries that it highly recommends courts support to facilitate electronic filing." [Full context]

• [December 04, 2002]   OASIS Announces Formation of e-Gov Technical Committee.    OASIS announced that an e-Gov Technical Committee has been created, "providing an international forum for governments to voice their needs and requirements with respect to XML-based standards." The TC Chair will be John Borras (Assistant Director Interoperability and Infrastructure, Office of the e-Envoy, Cabinet Office, UK). "Bringing together government representatives from around the world, the OASIS e-Gov Technical Committee will support the modernization of government and assist in the electronic delivery of services to citizens and businesses through the coordination and adoption of XML standards. The OASIS e-Gov Technical Committee will identify and organize plans for the development of new standards. Their recommendations and requirements will be formally submitted to appropriate working groups within OASIS. New technical committees may be formed for needs that are not currently being addressed. Resources created through the TC will serve as a clearinghouse of information related to applicable specs/standards as well as activities and projects being conducted by Governments in the adoption of XML-based systems and standards." [Full context]

• [December 03, 2002]   IBM WebSphere Voice Application Access Supports VoiceXML.    IBM has announced the WebSphere Voice Application Access middleware product designed to simplify "building and managing voice portals and to more easily extend web-based portals to voice. Leveraging the scalability, personalization, and authentication features of IBM's WebSphere Portal, it enables mobile workers to more easily access information from multiple voice applications -- using a single telephone number. This new offering includes IBM's WebSphere Voice Server as well as ready-to-use email, personal information management (PIM) functions, and sample portlets. It also supports VoiceXML and Java -- including development tools based on Eclipse, the open-source, vendor-neutral platform for writing software -- and uses open-standard programming languages to create voice-enabled applications that will interoperate with a range of web servers and databases. Building on the VoiceXML standards allows IBM WebSphere Voice Application Access to work with third party browsers and their associated underlying speech recognition and text-to-speech technologies. As the VoiceXML 2.0 specification nears final approval, IBM WebSphere Voice Application Access will move quickly to support it." [Full context]

• [December 03, 2002]   ebXML Collaboration Protocol Profile and Agreement 2.0 Approved as OASIS Open Standard.    OASIS announced that its members have voted to approve the ebXML Collaboration Protocol Profile and Agreement (CPPA) Version 2.0 as an OASIS Open Standard. TC Chair Dale Moberg (Cyclone Commerce) said: "ebXML CPPA ensures interoperability between two parties, even organizations that use software from different sources. The CPP defines a party's message-exchange capabilities and the business collaborations that it supports. The CPA defines the way two business parties will interact in performing the chosen business collaborations." According to Brian Gibb (Sterling Commerce) the specification "addresses a major issue with the rapid deployment of Internet B2B e-commerce -- the absence of a standard definition of technical parameters for communication and security that business partners need to agree upon. Representing these configuration parameters in the standard format of the ebXML CPPA specification will greatly accelerate users' integration processes. In addition to this immediate value, version 2.0 of the specification sets the stage for the standardized CPA negotiation process to come." The OASIS technical commmittee was chartered to continue the work of ebXML on Collaboration Protocol Profiles (CPPs) and Collaboration Protocol Agreements (CPAs). [Full context]

• [December 03, 2002]   Last Call Working Draft for W3C Speech Synthesis Markup Language (SSML).    The W3C Voice Browser Working Group has released a Last Call Working Draft of the "Speech Synthesis Markup Language Version 1.0." This specification describes markup for generating synthetic speech via a speech synthesizer, and forms part of the proposals for the W3C Speech Interface Framework. The Voice Browser Working Group has sought to develop standards to enable access to the Web using spoken interaction. The Speech Synthesis Markup Language Specification is part of this set of new markup specifications for voice browsers, and is designed to provide a rich, XML-based markup language for assisting the generation of synthetic speech in Web and other applications. The essential role of the SSML markup language is to provide authors of synthesizable content a standard way to control aspects of speech such as pronunciation, volume, pitch, rate, etc. across different synthesis-capable platforms. SSML is based upon the JSGF and/or JSML specifications, which are owned by Sun Microsystems, Inc.; a related initiative to estabilish a standard system for marking up text input is SABLE." An informative Appendix B provides the XML DTD for SSML; the normative Appendix C defines the SSML XML Schema. [Full context]

• [November 27, 2002]   Aries Systems Proposes Submission and Manuscript Exchange Format (SMXF) for STM Publishing.    Aries Systems Corporation has announced a new initiative that would "formulate a publishing industry standard to support the exchange of scientific manuscripts between differing online manuscript tracking systems." The proposal calls for the creation of an XML-based, system-neutral standard for the exchange of manuscript metadata and content. The Submission and Manuscript Exchange Format (SMXF) would support the needs of Scientific, Technical and Medical (STM) journals publishers who "have identified that the Internet provides an excellent medium for the submission and tracking of scientific manuscripts. The broad adoption of such a standard would provide key benefits to STM publishers; for example, a journal would be able to download SMXF data from one conforming system, and upload it into another, thereby ensuring continuity of service and data security. The SMXF standard could also be used to build functionality, enabling cooperating journals to share in-process manuscripts even if they use systems from different vendors." The developers envision that SMXF standard would "build on top of existing XML initiatives such as PRISM and the Dublin Core by making additional provisions for in-process manuscript data such as reviewer commentary, status terms, and editor decision letters." [Full context]

• [November 26, 2002]   New OASIS Translation Web Services Technical Committee.    OASIS has issued a Call for Participation in a new Translation Web Services Technical Committee. The purpose of the Translation Web Services TC is "to define industry standard business process terminology which will then drive the development of an industry standard WSDL file and UDDI business service entries. The TC will define the service types that are relevent to the software/content localisation and translation industry. These will be defined and published within a specification with a public call for comment. A key objective of the Translation Web Services TC will be to establish a set of business process terminology that the software/content localisation and translation industries shall find to be comprehensive and complete. For example it is possible that a publisher would like a document translated and wants to use Web Services to achieve this. One vendor could use the text 'translation' for the translation task, another might use 'trans' another 'trns'. The TWS business process terminology specification will ensure that when a publisher submits a document to be translated they use one set of terminology that is universally understood by all vendors providing the service." The TC Chair is Peter Reynolds (Bowne Global Solutions). The first meeting of the TC is January 16, 2003. [Full context]

• [November 26, 2002]   W3C Announces New Generation of Markup Validator Tool.    A new version of the W3C Markup Validator tool has been released, available as source code and through an online forms-based interface. Maintained by members of the W3C QA Activity Team and external collaborators, the Markup Validator is a free service that checks documents like HTML and XHTML for conformance to W3C Recommendations and other standards. The forms allow one to enter a URI or to upload files from a local computer and have the documents validated. When using the simple form, the validator attempts to detect the document type and encoding automatically; the advanced interface allows one to specify the document type and encoding. The enhanced Markup Validator tool has improved and more accessible interfaces, support for more document types, better internationalization support, restructured code and design, and other features. Noteworthy changes and additions include: (1) Support for MathML is back in good shape; (2) Support for application/xhtml+xml; (3) Support for XHTML+MathML and XHTML+MathML+SVG; (4) Support for SVG and image/svg+xml; (5) Support for XHTML 1.0 Second Edition and XHTML 1.1. [Full context]

• [November 26, 2002]   Entrust Contributes Digital Signature Protocol Specifications to OASIS DSS TC.    A posting from Robert Zuccherato (Entrust) to the OASIS DSS TC list announces the contribution of three technical specifications from Entrust germane to the work of the OASIS Digital Signature Services Technical Committee. An X-KISS Extension for Digital Signature Verification defines an extension to the XKMS X-KISS protocol that supports the verification of digital signatures. The document Digital Signature Web Service Interface "describes an RPC interface for a centralized digital signature web service that enforces policy controls on who can request signatures for specific transactions. The signature is calculated using a private key owned by the web service for the purpose of producing an 'organization' signature. Thus, anyone within the organization authorized to obtain an 'organization' signature can obtain it simply by request to the web service." A third document Tokens and Protocol for the Temporal Integrity Markup Language (TIML) "defines an XML schema for a timestamping protocol. Its schema is based upon the RFC 3161 ASN.1 timestamping protocol, but uses the XML Signature standard for signature formatting." These three protocols developed at Entrust are believed to meet the requirements for three particular deliverables sketched in the TC's provisional Statement of Purpose. [Full context]

• [November 26, 2002]   ZING Initiative Publishes Search/Retrieve Web Service (SRW) Version 1.0.    A posting distributed on behalf of the Z39.50 Maintenance Agency announces the release of SRW and CQL Version 1.0 specifications. SRW (Search/Retrieve Web Service) protocol "aims to integrate access to various networked resources, and to promote interoperability between distributed databases, by providing a common utilization framework. SRW features both SOAP and URL-based access mechanisms to provide for a wide variety of possible clients ranging from Microsoft's .Net initiative to simple Javascript and XSLT transformations. It leverages the CQL query language which provides a powerful yet intuitive means to formulate searches. XCQL is the CQL query language expressed in an XML form, designed to be part of a SOAP structure; it encodes the structure of the CQL within 'searchClause' and 'triple' elements. The SRW protocol mandates the use of open and industry-supported standards XML and XML Schema, and where appropriate, XPath and SOAP. SRW has been developed by an international team, minimizing cross-language pitfalls and other potential internationalization problems. SRW defines a web service combining several Z39.50 features, most notably, the Search, Present, and Sort Services. Additional features/services may be added later or defined later as new web services. The SRW and CQL version 1.0 specifications will remain stable for a six- to nine-month implementation-experience period." [Full context]

• [November 21, 2002]   XMLA Advisory Council Announces XML for Analysis Specification Version 1.1.    Hyperion, Microsoft Corp., and SAS have announced "a new release of the XML for Analysis (XMLA) specification. XML for Analysis Specification Version 1.1 provides an updated specification and API standard for vendors to access multidimensional databases as a Web service. XML for Analysis provides a set of XML Message Interfaces that use the industry standard Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) to define the data access interaction between a client application and an analytical data provider (OLAP and data mining) working over the Internet. Version 1.1 is the first version of the XMLA specification to be created in conjunction with members of the XMLA Advisory Council, a standards group that was formed after Hyperion and Microsoft released XML for Analysis Specification Version 1.0 in 2001. The XMLA Advisory Council also announced that it has added seven new members. The new council members -- Crystal Decisions, INEA, MIS AG, MJM Consultant Corp., Panorama Software Systems, SAP AG and Silvon Software, Inc.-- bring additional analytics expertise to the group. Several member companies recently hosted an interoperability workshop in Vancouver, British Columbia (November 6-8, 2002) to demonstrate the new XMLA standard working on an open, integrating platform for the analytics and business intelligence marketplace. On May 13, 2003, some 20 member companies of the XML for Analysis (XMLA) Council will participate in the worlds first public XMLA interoperability demonstration at The Data Warehouse Institute World Conference in San Francisco, CA." [Full context]

• [November 21, 2002]   RELAX NG Compact Syntax Published as an OASIS Committee Specification.    The OASIS RELAX NG Technical Committee has released a committee specification for RELAX NG Compact Syntax. Edited by James Clark, the committee specification describes a compact, non-XML syntax for the RELAX NG Specification (OASIS Committee Specification 3-December-2001). The compact syntax is specified by a grammar in BNF; the translation into the XML syntax is specified by annotations in the grammar. "The goals of this compact syntax are to: (1) maximize readability; (2) support all features of RELAX NG -- it must be possible to translate a schema from the XML syntax to the compact syntax and back without losing significant information; (3) support separate translation -- a RELAX NG schema may be spread amongst multiple files, it must be possible to represent each of the files separately in the compact syntax, and the representation of each file must not depend on the other files. The compact syntax has similarities to W3C XQuery 1.0 Formal Semantics, to Regular Expression Types for XML (XDuce), and to the DTD syntax of XML 1.0. The body of the document contains an informal description of the syntax and how it maps onto the XML syntax. Developers should consult Appendix A for a complete, rigorous description. The non-normative Appendix B presents an example compact syntax RELAX NG schema for RELAX NG." [Full context]

• [November 20, 2002]   OpenTravel Alliance (OTA) Publishes XML Specification Version 2002B.    The OpenTravel Alliance (OTA) has announced a Version 2002B release of its Extensible Markup Language (XML) specification for public review and comment. OTA develops XML-based communications specifications to support the efficient and effective exchange of travel industry information via the Internet. This Version 2002B specification "expands on the messages previously published, offering additional opportunities for trading partners within the travel industry to communicate with one another." Messages have been re-defined according to OTA's published Best Practices Guidelines for all of its XML data assets. The general OTA guideline approach is "to maximize component (elements/attributes) reuse for the highly diverse and yet closely related travel industry data; this is accomplished by building messages via context-driven component assembly. The application of best practices design and the re-definition of the XML component constructs to the specification supports a path of seamless integration and enhanced interoperability within all disciplines of the travel sector. With over 150 members representing influential names in all sectors of the travel industry, OTA is comprised of representatives from the airlines, car rental firms, hotels, leisure suppliers, service providers, tour operators, travel agencies, and trade associations. Together with an OTA interoperability committee to coordinate WG efforts, the OTA working groups develop open Internet-compatible messages using XML." [Full context]

• [November 20, 2002]   W3C Releases New Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) Specifications.    A communiqué from Chris Lilley (INRIA/Sophia-Antipolis, W3C Graphics Activity Lead) reports on the release of three W3C specifications for Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG). Both Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.1 Specification and Mobile SVG Profiles: SVG Tiny and SVG Basic have been been advanced to W3C Proposed Recommendations, and are open for comment through December 20, 2002. The specifications have been produced by members of the W3C SVG Working Group as part of the W3C Graphics Activity within the Document Formats Domain. Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) is "a language for describing two-dimensional graphics in XML. SVG allows for three types of graphic objects: vector graphic shapes (e.g., paths consisting of straight lines and curves), images and text. Graphical objects can be grouped, styled, transformed and composited into previously rendered objects. The feature set includes nested transformations, clipping paths, alpha masks, filter effects and template objects. SVG 1.1 separates the SVG language into reusable building blocks, while Mobile SVG re-combines them into two profiles optimized for cellphones and pocket computers." The W3C SVG Working Group has also released an initial public Working Draft of Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.2. "Potential areas of new work identified in SVG 1.2 include integration with other XML formats, and text wrapping, printing, streaming, painting, rendering model, and DOM enhancements." [Full context]

• [November 19, 2002]   Liberty Alliance Releases Draft Version 1.1 Specifications for Public Review.    The Liberty Alliance Project has released a public review draft of its version 1.1 specifications. This maintenance update incorporates feedback received from members and non-members during the last three months. The version 1.1 document suite is the first to be issued by the Liberty Alliance for public input. The Liberty Alliance Project represents "an alliance of more than 130 technology and consumer organizations formed to develop and deploy open, federated network identification specifications that support all current and emerging network devices in the digital economy. Its specifications focus on enabling interoperability between technology systems to make it easy for businesses to provide opt-in account linking and simplified sign-on functionality to partners, customers and employees." The version 1.1 draft specification suite includes two XML Schema files corresponding to the Protocols and Schema Specification and the Authentication Context Specification. The Liberty Bindings and Profiles Specification defines concrete transport bindings and usage profiles for the abstract Liberty protocols. Supporting documents include an Overview, Glossary, and Implementation Guidelines. In addition to the editorial changes, the v1.1 specification fixes a vulnerability in a Liberty-enabled Client/Proxy Profile and includes minor enhancements to provide additional flexibility in the specifications for identity and service providers. The public review period extends through December 16, 2002. [Full context]

• [November 18, 2002]   IBM alphaWorks Releases Web Services Toolkit for Mobile Devices.    The IBM alphaWorks Web Services Tool Kit for Mobile Devices "provides tools and run-time environments that allow development of applications that use Web Services on small mobile devices. Its Java Web service run-time environment is supported on PoctketPC, Palm, and BlackBerry; the C Web service run-time environment is supported on the Palm." The Java toolkit version uses the kSOAP SOAP API built upon kXML, and implements a subset of the SOAP 1.2 specification. kXML provides "an XML pull parser and writer suitable for all Java platforms including the Java 2 Micro Edition (CLDC/MIDP/CDC); because of its small footprint size, it is especially suited for Applets or Java appications running on mobile devices like Palm Pilots or MIDP enabled cell phones." The C implementation uses gSOAP compiler tools which "provide a unique SOAP/XML-to-C/C++ language binding to ease the development of SOAP/XML Web services and clients in C and/or C++; gSOAP is an application-centric low-memory-overhead toolset suitable for Web service and client executables." [Full context]

• [November 16, 2002]   ISO SC34 Publishes Draft Reference Model for Topic Maps (RM4TM).    A posting from Steven R. Newcomb announces the availability of a first public draft of The Reference Model for Topic Maps (RM4TM), produced by members of the ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC34 Topic Map Models Project. The Reference Model defines "an abstract graph structure for the representation of relationships between subjects, rules for defining Applications of the Topic Maps paradigm, and rules for processing the information contained in topic maps. The primary objective of the Topic Maps paradigm is to make everything known about every subject accessible from a single location." In Newcomb's summary, the draft document "shows how to regard any data content notation, database schema, etc., as a topic map notation, so that its knowledge content can be automatically and losslessly amalgamated with all other kinds of knowledge content into a comprehensive topic map that honors the Subject Location Uniqueness Objective. The Subject Location Uniqueness Objective is to have one single subject per node, and for every participating subject to have one single node, even after any number of diverse topic maps have been merged together." ISO SC34 is also creating two new topic map standards: ISO 18048 "Topic Maps Query Language (TMQL)" provides a kind of SQL (or XML Query) for topic maps; ISO 19756 "Topic Maps Constraint Language (TMCL)" provides a schema or constraint language for use in constraining what is allowable to say in the topic map. [Full context]

• [November 15, 2002]   W3C Patent Policy Working Group Issues Last Call Royalty-Free Patent Policy Working Draft.    The W3C has released a last call working draft for the Patent Policy Working Group Royalty-Free Patent Policy. The draft policy "governs the handling of patents in the process of producing and implementing W3C Recommendations." Comments from W3C members and the public are invited during the Last Call review period, which ends on 31-December-2002. From the announcement: "The primary goal of the W3C Patent Policy Working Draft is to enable W3C Recommendations to be implemented on a royalty-free basis, and to encourage disclosure by both W3C Members and others when they are aware of patents -- their own or others -- that may be essential to the implementation of W3C Recommendations. In simple terms, all who participate in the development of a W3C Recommendation must agree to license essential claims (patents that block interoperability) on a royalty-free (RF) basis. Patent disclosures are required for W3C Working Group participants and anyone else who sees the technical drafts and is aware of patents that may be essential. The Working Group has developed a process for resolving disputes in the event patent claims are identified that are not available royalty-free. Options including designing around the patents, investigating the validity of the patents, or transitioning the work to another organization that is willing to produce RAND (reasonable and non-discriminatory terms) standards. The Policy does not require giving up one's entire patent portfolio; it concerns only those patent claims that are essential to implement a standard that one participates in developing at W3C. W3C is clear in aiming to solve a specific problem -- to remove the threat of blocking patents on key components of Web infrastructure." [Full context]

• [November 13, 2002]   BPMI.org Publishes BPML 1.0 and Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) Working Draft.    The Business Process Management Initiative (BPMI.org) has announced the release of the final draft for the Business Process Modeling Language (BPML 1.0) and the first public working draft for the Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN). The two business process management (BPM) specifications are made publicly available under royalty-free terms, and are represented as offering "the first business process modeling language to provide a graphical notation that can be used by business analysts for the modeling of executable and manageable business processes." The Business Process Modeling Language (BPML) specification "provides an abstract model for expressing business processes and supporting entities. BPML defines a formal model for expressing abstract and executable processes that address all aspects of enterprise business processes, including activities of varying complexity, transactions and their compensation, data management, concurrency, exception handling and operational semantics." The Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) specification "provides a graphical notation for expressing business processes in a Business Process Diagram (BPD). The objective of BPMN is to support process management by both technical users and business users by providing a notation that is intuitive to business users yet able to represent complex process semantics. The BPMN specification also provides a mapping between the graphics of the notation to underlying the constructs of execution languages, such as BPEL4WS and BPML." [Full context]

• [November 12, 2002]   W3C XForms 1.0 Advances to Candidate Recommendation Status.    The W3C XForms Working Group published a Candidate Recommendation version of the XForms 1.0 specification. XForms 1.0 "provides a new platform-independent markup language for online interaction between a person (through an XForms Processor) and another, usually remote, agent. XForms is an XML application that represents the next generation of forms for the Web. By splitting traditional XHTML forms into three parts -- XForms model, instance data, and user interface -- it separates presentation from content, allows reuse, gives strong typing -- reducing the number of round-trips to the server, as well as offering device independence and a reduced need for scripting. XForms is not a free-standing document type, but is intended to be integrated into other markup languages, such as XHTML or SVG. The Candidate Recommendation provides an opportunity for these changes to be reflected in implementations, and for the XForms Working Group to collect test cases and information about implementations. The WG expects that sufficient feedback to determine its future will have been received by 05-March-2003." [Full context]

• [November 12, 2002]   Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) Version 1.0 an OASIS Open Standard.    The OASIS membership recently voted to approve version 1.0 of the Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) as an OASIS standard. SAML is "an XML-based framework for Web services that allows the exchange of authentication and authorization information among business partners. SAML enables Web-based security interoperability functions, such as single sign-on, across sites hosted by multiple companies. SAML incorporates industry-standard protocols and messaging frameworks, such as XML Signature, XML Encryption, and SOAP. The specification can be easily integrated in standard environments such as HTTP and standard Web browsers. Likewise, other security environments can use SAML as an authentication and authorization layer. SAML complements Web services standards, such as SOAP, which lack inherent security features. The OASIS Web Services Security Technical Committee, for example, is profiling SAML as one of its set of security tokens." [Full context]

• [November 12, 2002]   Processing XML with Java: A Guide to SAX, DOM, JDOM, JAXP, and TrAX.    Addison-Wesley has published Elliotte Rusty Harold's substantial volume Processing XML with Java: A Guide to SAX, DOM, JDOM, JAXP, and TrAX, also provided online by the author. "Written for Java programmers who want to integrate XML into their systems, this practical, comprehensive guide and reference shows how to process XML documents with the Java programming language. It leads experienced Java developers beyond the basics of XML, allowing them to design sophisticated XML applications and parse complicated documents. Processing XML with Java provides a brief review of XML fundamentals, including XML syntax: DTDs, schemas, and validity; stylesheets; and the XML protocols XML-RPC, SOAP, and RSS. The core of the book comprises in-depth discussions on the key XML APIs Java programmers must use to create and manipulate XML files with Java. These include the Simple API for XML (SAX), the Document Object Model (DOM), and JDOM (a Java native API). In addition, the book covers many useful supplements to these core APIs, including XPath, XSLT, TrAX, and JAXP. The book supplies over two hundred examples that demonstrate how to accomplish various important tasks related to file formats, data exchange, document transformation, and database integration. The reader will learn how to read and write XML documents with Java code, convert legacy flat files into XML documents, communicate with network servers that send and receive XML data, and much more." [Full context]

• [November 11, 2002]   OASIS Members Form Tax XML Technical Committee.    A new OASIS 'Tax XML' Technical Committee is being formed to "focus on developing a common vocabulary that will allow participants to unambiguously identify the tax related information exchanged within a particular business context. The Tax XML TC will begin by creating a framework for ongoing development of a robust Tax vocabulary, the XML artifacts and a repository for managing these definitions, and documentation. It is expected that a subset of the overall tax information arena will be selected for the greatest return on investment and will be expanded as appropriate. Eventually, it is expected that working groups and possibly additional TCs will be formed to address an expanded scope of tax information... Tax XML will rely heavily on incorporating the XML standards that are defined for the common business vocabulary. Since tax related information spans many business interests and is mostly either an extension of common business documents or a repackaging of business information for tax compliance documents, any existing or in progress standards for business information will be examined and incorporated as appropriate. It is expected that this coordination and collaboration will be conducted with XBRL (The Extensible Business Reporting Language), and other leading initiatives as needed." [Full context]

• [November 11, 2002]   W3C Publishes XML-Signature XPath Filter 2.0 as W3C Recommendation.    The XML-Signature XPath Filter 2.0 specification produced by the IETF/W3C XML Signature Working Group has been released in its final publication stage as a W3C Recommendation. The Working Group "believes the specification is sufficient for the creation of independent interoperable implementations as demonstrated in the Interoperability Report. The XML Signature Recommendation (XML-Signature Syntax and Processing) defines standard means for specifying information content to be digitally signed, including the ability to select a portion of an XML document to be signed using an XPath transform. The XML-Signature XPath Filter 2.0 specification describes a new signature filter transform that, like the XPath transform, provides a method for computing a portion of a document to be signed. In the interest of simplifying the creation of efficient implementations, the architecture of this transform is not based on evaluating an XPath expression for every node of the XML parse tree, as defined by the XPath data model. Instead, a sequence of XPath expressions is used to select the roots of document subtrees -- location sets, in the language of XPointer -- which are combined using set intersection, subtraction and union, and then used to filter the input node-set." [Full context]

• [November 09, 2002]   OpenI18N Announces Common XML Locale Specification.    An announcement from the OpenI18N (Free Standards Group Open Internationalization Initiative) describes the release of an XML specification for common XML locale data, available from the Common XML Locale Repository project. The goal of the Common XML Locale Repository project "is to devise a general XML format for the exchange of culturally sensitive (locale) information for use in application and system development, and to gather, store, and make available data generated in that format." The XML specification has been produced by members of the LADE (Linux Application Development Environment) Workgroup. A Locale Data Markup Language specification describes an XML vocabulary for the exchange of structured locale data. Source files containing locale/culture information are converted to be compliant to the Common Locale XML specification, validated by the accompanying Common Locale XML DTD. The LADE Workgroup "has finalized the XML specification of the culture information data to be shared by the application developers creating globalized software. It is also in the process of creating a set of modular standards such that the culture information repertoire can be used based on one or more components or as a whole, depending on the end users' needs." [Full context]

• [November 08, 2002]   W3C Publishes Guide to the Web Ontology Language (OWL).    The W3C Web Ontology Working Group has produced a Version 1.0 working draft document Web Ontology Language (OWL) Guide documenting key concepts and uses of the OWL language. Building upon the foundations of the DAML+OIL specification, the W3C Web Ontology Language (OWL) "is intended to provide a language that can be used to describe the classes and relations between them that are inherent in Web documents and applications. The new Guide demonstrates the use of the OWL language (1) to formalize a domain by defining classes and properties of those classes, (2) to define individuals and assert properties about them, and (3) to reason about these classes and individuals to the degree permitted by the formal semantics of the OWL language. Document sections are organized to present an incremental definition of a set of classes, properties and individuals, beginning with the fundamentals and proceeding to more complex language components." The development of the Web Ontology Language is motivated by a recognition that the World Wide Web "as it is currently constituted resembles a poorly mapped geography. Our insight into the documents and capabilities available are based on keyword searches, abetted by clever use of document connectivity and usage patterns. The sheer mass of this data is unmanageable without powerful tool support. In order to map this terrain more precisely, computational agents require machine-readable descriptions of the content and capabilities of web accessible resources. These descriptions must be in addition to the human-readable versions of that information." [Full context]

• [November 08, 2002]   Public Review for OASIS Extensible Access Control Markup Language (XACML) Specification.    Members of the OASIS Extensible Access Control Markup Language Technical Committee recently approved a version 1.0 Committee Specification for the XACML specification and voted to move the document forward for standardization. The motivation behind XACML is to express well-established ideas in the field of access-control policy using an extension language of XML. The XACML specification defines an XML schema consistent with this goal. The XACML 1.0 Committee Specification is now "undergoing a public review period in preparation for submission to OASIS for consideration as an OASIS Standard; the public review period will extend from Friday, November 8, 2002 until Sunday, December 8, 2002 (inclusive)." [Full context]

• [November 07, 2002]   IEEE Computer Special Issue on Web Services Computing.    The IEEE Computer Society has issued a call for papers in connection with a special issue of Computer dedicated to Web Services Computing. IEEE "invites articles relating to integration architectures for Web Services and/or application case studies that use Web Services technology." This issue will be guest edited by co-chairs of the IEEE Computer Society Task Force on Electronic Commerce (TFEC). The special issue will be published August 2003. Papers should be submitted by January 15, 2003 and may address any of these topics: (1) Web Services architecture and security; Frameworks for building Web Service applications; Composite Web Service creation and enabling infrastructures; (2) Web Services discovery; Resource management for web services; Solution Management for Web Services; (3) Dynamic invocation mechanisms for Web Services; Quality of service for Web Services; Web Services modeling; UDDI enhancements; SOAP enhancements; (4) Case studies for Web Services; E-Commerce applications using Web Services; Grid based Web Services applications." [Full context]

• [November 05, 2002]   PKI Forum Continues Security Advocacy as an OASIS PKI Member Section.    OASIS has announced the expansion of its Member Section Program to include the PKI Forum. The newest OASIS Member Section, PKI Forum "will continue to advance the use of the Public-Key Infrastructure (PKI) as a foundation for secure transactions in e-business and Web services applications. As a security advocacy group, the PKI Forum brings technology and service providers, integrators and end-users together to accelerate the adoption and use of PKI applications, digital certificates and other real world solutions, as well as to facilitate interoperability through multi-vendor testing of industry standards and educational outreach. Established in 1999, PKI Forum serves as a global information resource for PKI and advocates cooperation and market awareness enabling organizations to understand and exploit the value of PKI in applications relevant to their businesses. Under the new organizational structure, members of PKI Forum will join OASIS and be eligible to contribute to all OASIS technical work. Existing OASIS members will have the option to participate in PKI committee activities without additional membership dues. PKI committees will be formed and operate under the OASIS technical process. The PKI Forum Executive Board will continue to guide the alliance as the OASIS PKI Member Section Steering Committee. Members include Derek Brink of RSA Security, Peter Doyle of Baltimore Technologies, John Sabo of Computer Associates, Mitch Arnone of Schlumberger Network Solutions, Patrick Gen Kanaishi of Neucom, Terry Leahy of Wells Fargo, and Jeff Stapleton of KPMG." [Full context]

• [November 05, 2002]   UK e-GIF Publishes XML Schemas For Use in Local Elections.    XML Schemas for use in local elections have been published as part of the UK e-Government Interoperability Framework (e-GIF). These XML Schemas have undergone public consultation and have been agreed by the Office of the e-Envoy. The Schemas represent a UK adaptation of the EML International Schema developed by the OASIS Election and Voter Services Technical Committee. The distribution contains some 33 XML Schema (.xsd) files and an overview document EML: Customisation for UK Local Elections. The specification includes an introduction on (optional) validation of EML-UK document using Schematron schemas. [Full context]

• [November 04, 2002]   OASIS Technical Committee for Open Office XML File Format.    OASIS has issued a Call for Participation in a new 'Open Office XML Format Technical Committee'. The TC members intend to create an open, XML-based file format specification for office applications. Michael Brauer (Sun Microsystems) will chair the TC. The proposed XML file format is to be "suitable for office documents containing text, spreadsheets, charts, and graphical documents." It will be compatible XML v1.0 and W3C Namespaces. The file format will "retain high-level information suitable for editing the document and keep the document's content and layout information separate such that they can be processed independently of each other." For interoperability, it must be "friendly to transformations using XSLT or similar XML-based languages or tools. The design will borrow from similar, existing standards wherever possible and permitted. Since the OpenOffice.org XML format specification meets these criteria and has proven its value in real life, this TC will use it as the basis for its work. Sun Microsystems intends to contribute the OpenOffice.org XML Format to this TC at the first meeting of the TC, under reciprocal Royalty Free terms. TC work will be done in two phases, each resulting in a Committee Specification that includes (1) a set of XML DTDs/schemas setting the vocabulary, constraints and semantics of the file format in question, and (2) a set of written specifications that describe the elements and attributes of the DTDs/schemas in plain English." [Full context]

• [November 04, 2002]   IETF Charters Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) Working Group.    A posting from Pete Resnick announces that IETF's Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) approved the charter for a new Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) Working Group. XMPP is "an open, XML-based protocol for near real-time extensible messaging and presence. It is the core protocol of the Jabber Instant Messaging and Presence technology which is currently deployed on thousands of servers across the Internet and is used by millions of people worldwide. The XMPP working group will adapt the XMPP for use as an IETF Instant Messaging and Presence technology." Three IETF Internet Drafts for XMPP will serve as a basis for the deliverables of the IETF working group: XMPP Core describes the core features XMPP which is used by the servers, clients, and other applications that comprise the Jabber network; XMPP Instant Messaging describes the specific extensions necessary to create a basic instant messaging and presence application; XMPP CPIM Mapping describes a mapping of XMPP to the IETF Common Presence and Instant Messaging specification. "The main focus of the Working Group will be on XML streams (including stream-level security and authentication), the core data elements (<message/>, <presence/>, and <iq/>), and the namespaces required to achieve basic instant messaging and presence." [Full context]

• [November 01, 2002]   IBM Infoprint XML Extender for z/OS Supports XSL Stylesheets and XSL-FO.    A communiqué from Bob Schloss (IBM) reports on the availability of software to perform "high quality printing of XML documents using XSL stylesheets and the XSL-FO vocabulary, using the existing AFP (Advanced Function Printing) support for z/OS. The Infoprint XML Extender for z/OS enables XML applications to be printed on AFP printers using standard XSL formatting. AFP is the de facto standard solution for mission critical business output in many large enterprises. Producing an AFP document from XML data is a two-step process. First the XML document is transformed using an XSL style sheet into an intermediate XML document, referred to as an XSL Formatting Object (XSL-FO) document. The XSL-FO document is then composed by Infoprint XML Extender into an AFP document. Because of this two step process, Infoprint XML Extender can accommodate either XML documents with companion XSL style sheets or XSL-FO documents as input into the production of AFP, providing a highly flexible formatting solution for XML-based applications." [Full context]

• [October 29, 2002]   OASIS Members Propose TC for User Interface Markup Language (UIML).    An OASIS technical committee for User Interface Markup Language (UIML) is being formed based upon a proposal from interested members. The purpose of the TC "is to develop a specification for an abstract meta-language that can provide a canonical XML representation of any user interface (UI); the language should be capable of specifying the requirements, design, and implementation of any UI. The committee will use the UIML version 3.0 specification created by Virginia Tech's Center for Human Computer Interaction, Harmonia, Inc., and other organizations on uiml.org as a starting point" for the TC work. According to the announcement, a "general motivation for a canonical UI representation language is to accelerate the development of tools for UI development. If practitioners from these fields build tools with UIML, then the tools can interoperate. Just as XML made toolbuilders more efficient (because tools built for XML work for any XML vocabulary), so can UIML make UI toolbuilders more efficient (because tools built for UIML work for any vocabulary representing any concrete UI implementation language). Thus the TC's work will serve to assemble the jigsaw puzzle pieces of UI and HCI technology that have been created." [Full context]

• [October 29, 2002]   Diffuse Final Conference Focuses on Web Services, Grid Services, and Semantic Web.    A communiqué from Martin Bryan (Technical Manager, The Diffuse Project) announces the program for the Diffuse Final Conference, to be held December 12, 2002 in Brussels. The conference title is: "Convergence of Web Services, Grid Services and the Semantic Web for Delivering e-Services?" Organized by the IST Diffuse Project and hosted by the European Commission, the conference will feature keynote presentations by Erkki Liikanen (Member of the European Commission responsible for Enterprise and Information Society), Carl Kesselman (a Founder of the Grid), Bruce Perens (Primary Author of the Open Source Definition), and Guus Schreiber (Co-Chair, W3C Web Ontology WG). Vendors' Perspectives will be presnted by David Orchard (BEA Systems), Steve Holbrook (IBM), and Simon Phipps (Sun Microsystems). "The conference will review, explore and discuss the strategic issues concerning and surrounding the three interrelated technologies of Web Services, Grid Services and the Semantic Web from a broad perspective. It will identify their synergies or otherwise, examine the drivers for development and implementations, chart current development paths and debate likely future directions." [Full context]

• [October 29, 2002]   CIMI Consortium Releases SPECTRUM XML Schema Version 1.5 for Testing.    The Consortium for Interchange of Museum Information (CIMI) has announced a public release of the Version 1.5 CIMI XML Schema for SPECTRUM, together with an implementation and testing forum. CIMI is a consortium of cultural heritage institutions and organizations that encourages open, standards-based approaches to creating and sharing digital information. The CIMI Schema for SPECTRUM enables the XML encoding of individual items in museum collections, across the full scope of Edition 2 of SPECTRUM: The UK Museum Documentation Standard. The Schema v1.5 release includes CIMI XML Schema for SPECTRUM: Supporting Documentation. Section 5.1 of this document describes the test-bed datasets which demonstrate the potential of the CIMI Schema to encode data from a wide range of museum collections. Examples are provided. Section 5.2 supplies guidance on the use of the XML Schema within specific areas. "The examples illustrate areas of the Schema relating to complex issues in the description of museum objects. Implementers requiring further details are invited to post queries on the XML Discussion List, where CIMI staff and members will be happy to respond." [Full context]

• [October 25, 2002]   Sun Secure Trading Agent Technology Preview Supports ebXML MS and CPA.    Sun Microsystems has announced a Technology Preview for the Sun ONE Integration Server Secure Trading Agent (STA). STA Version 1.0 Beta "implements a standards-based, secure, reliable system that provides for the exchange of business documents between trading partners, according to an agreement between the trading partners. This support for electronic business transactions is based on emerging ebXML standards, which are geared toward helping small to medium-sized companies use the Internet for conducting business transactions with their trading partners. This version supports both the ebXML Message Service Specification v2.0 and ebXML Collaboration Protocol Profile and Agreement Specification v2.0. This Beta release of Secure Trading Agent enforces the following security measures specified in an ebXML agreement: (1) Transport Security: Security measures for the transport of ebXML messages, including business documents attached to the message. Transport security can be implemented using a combination of secure transport protocols (such as SSL), digital certificates, and digital signatures. (2) Document Security: The encryption and digital signing of business documents attached to an ebXML message, providing measures for authentication, data integrity, and confidentiality. (3) Authorization: Verification by Secure Trading Agent that persons acting in roles for parties are authorized to perform those roles. Authorization of user roles is not implemented in the Beta release of Secure Trading Agent. (4) Nonrepudiation: A guarantee that a message arrives and also a guarantee of the contents of the message. Nonrepudiation includes being able to provide a history of transactions for auditing purposes and proof of delivery for each transaction." [Full context]

• [October 24, 2002]   Microsoft XSD Inference Tool Creates Schemas from XML Instances.    A posting from Dare Obasanjo announces the availability of a Microsoft XSD Inference utility. The Beta 1 XSD Inference Tool "is used to create an XML Schema definition language (XSD) schema from an XML instance document. The input must be a well-formed XML instance document, and not an XML fragment. The output is an XML schema that can validate the instance document. When provided with well-formed XML file, the utility generates an XSD that can be used to validate that XML file. You can also refine the XSD generated by providing the tool more well-formed XML files." An interface to the tool is available online, and a binaries may be downloaded for use with Microsoft .Net Frameworks. For the online version, the total size of the file must not exceed 1 MB. Related utilities from the Microsoft 'GotDotNet' XML Tools Team include the Microsoft XML Diff and Patch tool and an XSD Schema Validator. [Full context]

• [October 24, 2002]   Sun Microsystems Announces Java Architecture for XML Binding Beta Implementation.    Sun Microsystems has announced the availability of a JAXB beta Reference Implementation, version 0.75 Public Draft Specification, API documentation, and User's Guide. JAXB (Java Architecture for XML Binding) "provides an API and tools that automate the mapping between XML documents and Java objects. It is a Java technology that enables you to generate Java classes from XML schemas, providing an efficient and standard way to map between XML and Java code. With JAXB, you can quickly bind XML schemas to Java representations, making it easy to incorporate XML data and processing functions in your Java applications. JAXB makes XML easy to use by compiling an XML schema into one or more Java technology classes. The combination of the schema derived classes and the binding framework enable one to perform the following operations on an XML document: (1) unmarshal XML content into a Java representation; (2) access, update and validate the Java representation against schema constraint; (3) marshal the Java representation of the XML content into XML content. The current specification release provides several enhancements, including support for a subset of W3C XML Schema and XML Namespaces, more flexible unmarshalling and marshalling functionality, and validation process enhancements." [Full context]

• [October 22, 2002]   Enhanced Adobe Document Servers Support XML-Based Workflow and Digital Signature Facilities.    Adobe Systems has announced a new server and solutions product line, including Adobe Document Server and Adobe Document Server for Reader Extensions. The Adobe Document Server automates the production of complex Adobe PDF documents by assembling XML data with professionally formatted templates incorporating rich visual content. By using form fields that are defined in Adobe PDF documents, Document Server supports the customization of documents down to the individual user. With the Adobe Document Server for Reader Extensions, "agencies can automate electronic forms and document processes -- reducing reliance on inefficient paper-based workflows. They can give their constituents the ability to apply digital signatures using industry-standard technologies, and finally submit the filled-in form electronically, completely eliminating paper from the forms workflow. Completed Adobe PDF forms and forms data in the Extensible Markup Language (XML) can also be easily integrated with an organization's backend systems to enable round-trip transactional workflows." [Full context]

• [October 21, 2002]   EAN.UCC Global Data Dictionary (GDD) Supports Standards Development Framework.    The EAN.UCC Global Data Dictionary (GDD) was recently announced by EAN International and the Uniform Code Council (UCC) as a new tool providing a common framework for global standards development. "Developed by the UCC, EAN International, and global users representing a wide range of industries, the GDD is a relational database of names, terms, and definitions that support the standards of the EAN.UCC System. This online repository supports the definitions and references associated with all data components and entities of EAN.UCC standards. The GDD also supports cross-reference to external standards organization entities, including ebXML, X12, and EANCOM. The dictionary will provide a foundational information tool for the EAN.UCC Global Standards Management Process, which provides a single-pass source for the development of open, global standards for users of the EAN.UCC System. By providing a clear and common framework, the dictionary will help eliminate ambiguity from the terms used in EAN.UCC business messages and XML standards. The development of new e-business standards by EAN and UCC has created a critical need to store, reuse and share precise core components and business definitions and their equivalent representations in targeted standards such as EDI (Electronic Data Interchange), XML (Extensible Markup Language), or AIDC (Automatic Identification and Data Capture). The EAN.UCC Global Data Dictionary functions as a core components repository for this data. The dictionary provides a single, global source for the names, terms, and definitions that support EAN.UCC standards and will greatly enhance the ability of users to understand and implement the standards." [Full context]

• [October 18, 2002]   Web Services Interoperability Organization Publishes Basic Profile Version 1.0.    WS-I (Web Services Interoperability Organization) has released a working group draft specification for WS-I Basic Profile Version 1.0. Produced by the WS-I's Basic Profile Working Group, the document defines the WS-I Basic Profile, consisting of a set of non-proprietary Web services specifications, along with clarifications to those specifications which promote interoperability. The Basic Profile "dictates how a selected set of specified Web services technologies should be used together in an interoperable manner. They are: (1) Messaging -- the exchange of protocol elements, usually over a network, to effect a Web service; (2) Description -- the enumeration of the messages associated with a Web service, along with implementation details; (3) Discovery -- metadata that enables the advertisement of a Web service's capabilities; (4) Security -- mechanisms that provide integrity, privacy, authentication and authorization functions. The profile mandates the use of a particular technology (or technologies), when appropriate, for each of these components." [Full context]

• [October 18, 2002]   ComCARE Alliance Publishes XML-Based Emergency Incident Data Set Recommendation.    An announcement from the ComCARE Alliance (Communications for Coordinated Assistance and Response to Emergencies) reports on the completion of a recommended data set for electronic emergency incident data. The draft vehicular emergency incident data set recommendation was produced by the ComCARE Alliance Automatic Crash Notification (ACN) Data Set Working Group. The data set is designed to enable the electronic flow of emergency information from telematics service providers to multiple public safety agencies, hospitals, transportation agencies, and EMTs dispatched to the incident scene. "More than 20 organizations participated in the development effort, including safety leaders of the Northern Shenandoah Valley Initiative, OnStar, ATX Technologies, the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), the National Association of State EMS Directors, the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch (NAED), and others. The participation and leadership of OnStar and ATX represents more than 95 percent of the existing telematics market. The ComCARE Working Group will now present the data set to numerous other safety and medical organizations, government, companies, and standards development organizations that may be interested in the topic. The Working Group plans to work with these groups to get their input and endorsement of the data set and begin discussing implementation. Once implemented by users, the data set will enable efficient, national electronic transmission of crash and other emergency information from telematics service providers, as well as other data from emergency response agency and private sources related to vehicular emergencies." [Full context]

• [October 18, 2002]   International Press Telecommunications Council Approves NewsML Version 1.1 Specification.    A posting from David Allen announces the approval of the NewsML Version 1.1 specification by the International Press Telecommunications Council (IPTC). A revised XML DTD and XML Schema are available on the project website. The NewsML Schema Version 1.1 represents the same document structure as the NewsML DTD version 1.1; in addition it provides control over element and attribute content in accordance with the NewsML Specification. IPTC has also published an updated V1.1 NewsML Functional Specification and IPTC NewsML NewsAgency Implementation Guidelines document. NewsML is "a compact, extensible and flexible structural framework for news, based on XML and other appropriate standards and specifications. It supports the representation of electronic news items, collections of such items, the relationships between them, and their associated metadata. It allows for the provision of multiple representations of the same information, and handles arbitrary mixtures of media types, formats, languages and encodings. It supports all stages of the news lifecycle and allows the evolution of news items over time. Though media-independent, NewsML provides specific mechanisms for handling text. It allows the provenance of both metadata and news content to be asserted." [Full context]

• [October 17, 2002]   IBM alphaWorks Releases WSDL Explorer Web Application.    The IBM alphaWorks developers have released a Web Services Description Language (WSDL) Explorer to assist in analyzing candidate web services. It is available as an online viewer and as a standalone application. The WSDL Explorer "is a Web application that displays WSDL files, generates views of operations, allows invocation of operations, and allows viewing of sample message flow. It enables users to compare and contrast Web services without going through the time and trouble of importing them into a heavy development tool. WSDL Explorer provides the ability to browse WSDL files, and it offers immediate access to Web service operations. WSDL Explorer displays the port types and operations as a tree in a navigation frame, and it displays a form view for a selected operation in a content frame. Data may be put in the form view and the operation invoked. Formatted results are displayed in an output frame. WSDL Explorer also displays the actual request and response messages. The WSDL Explorer is an innovative application of dynamic HTML combined with JSP technology. WSDL files are analyzed on the server; however, all tree navigation and operation invocation takes place on the client using JavaScript. Because all SOAP requests come from the client, this approach prevents an organization's servers from unwittingly participating in a denial-of-service attack." [Full context]

• [October 16, 2002]   OASIS Members Propose Digital Signature Services Technical Committee.    Representatives from five OASIS corporate members (Entrust, Datum, NIST, webMethods, TIBCO) have proposed the creation of a new Digital Signature Services Technical Committee to develop techniques to support the processing of digital signatures. According to the proposal, the OASIS DSS technical committee will "define an interface for requesting that a web service produce and/or verify a digital signature on a given piece of data and techniques for proving that a signature was created within its private key validity period. The TC will develop a protocol for a digital signature creation web service. Providing digital signatures via such a web service facilitates policy-based control of the provision of the signatures. The TC will also develop a protocol for a centralized digital signature verification web service that can verify signatures in relation to a given policy set. Finally, the TC will develop an XML-based protocol to produce cryptographic time stamps that can be used for determing whether or not a signature was created within the associated public key's validity period or before revocation. This is required as part of the signature verification algorithm." Robert Zuccherato of Entrust Inc. will serve as the DSS TC Chair. [Full context]

• [October 16, 2002]   W3C Publishes Extensible Markup Language (XML) 1.1 as a Candidate Recommendation.    W3C has released Extensible Markup Language (XML) 1.1 as a Candidate Recommendation specification, signifying "that the document is believed to be stable, and to encourage implementation by the developer community. The specification addresses Unicode, control character, and line ending issues. Everything that is not forbidden is permitted in XML 1.1 names." XML 1.1 was known earlier as 'XML Blueberry'. The document "takes the form of a series of alterations to the XML 1.0 Recommendation, and its numbered sections correspond to those of the XML 1.0 Recommendation. Sections of that Recommendation that do not appear in this document remain unchanged in XML 1.1. It is likely that the final XML 1.1 Recommendation will take the form of an integral revision of the XML 1.0 specification." Interoperable implementations are being sought, and the W3C XML Core Working Group invites public comment on the draft. [Full context]

• [October 15, 2002]   Storage Vendors Announce CIM Product Rollout and Joint Interoperability Testing.    Four storage vendors have announced a new coordinated effort "dedicated to the promotion and progress of SNIA's Common Information Model (CIM), Web-Based Enterprise Management (WBEM) technology, and Storage Management Initiative (SMI) specifications for Storage Area Network (SAN)-based storage management. As part of this effort, the four companies are also announcing their individual plans to roll out CIM/WBEM-based products in calendar year 2003. CIM/WBEM has been endorsed by SNIA as the technology to help enable simplified multi-vendor management of storage networks. Hitachi Data Systems, IBM, Sun, and VERITAS are active members of SNIA and contributed to drafting the SNIA-adopted Bluefin/SMI specifications. These specifications define how CIM technology is used to manage storage environments. The companies are also actively encouraging all other storage vendors to join them in supporting CIM/WBEM standards. Participating companies would be expected to: (1) Ship CIM/WBEM based storage management software commercially in calendar year 2003; (2) Support the emerging SMI specifications endorsed by SNIA; (3) Make their CIM Providers (SMI Agents) available to others for testing; (4) Conduct joint interoperability testing and qualifications; (5) Support the CIM/WBEM interface as specified by SNIA's Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF). The CIM specification is the language and methodology for describing management data; the CIM XML schema includes models for Systems, Applications, Networks (LAN) and Devices." [Full context]

• [October 10, 2002]   ISDA Announces New FpML Working Groups for Energy and Validation.    A communiqué from Karel Engelen (FpML Project Manager) announces ISDA's call for participation in two new working groups for the Financial Products Markup Language (FpML) standard. FpML "is the XML-based, freely licensed, e-commerce standard supporting OTC trading of financial derivatives." The new FpML Validation Working Group will work to "enable the extension of the FpML product definitions to include semantic or business validation rules through the use of a validation rule language. A Business Rule Definition effort will build on the standards definition work in each of the FpML product working groups to start the plain English definition of the relevant business rules for each version of the FpML standard. A related Rule Language Definition activity will document the requirements for a FpML validation rule language and describe unambiguous business validation rules for the different versions of the FpML standard." The new Energy Derivatives Working Group will "extend the product coverage of the FpML standard to include products for the following energy markets while ensuring that the design will accommodate other commodities. The scope includes Financial Oil, Financial Natural Gas, Physical Natural Gas, Financial Power, and Physical Power." FpML is "a business information exchange standard for electronic dealing and processing of financial derivatives instruments. It establishes the industry protocol for sharing information on, and dealing in, complex financial products over the Internet. It is based on XML (Extensible Markup Language), the standard meta-language for describing data shared between applications. Currently focusing on interest rate derivatives, FX, equity derivatives and credit derivatives, FpML will eventually cover all categories of privately negotiated derivatives." [Full context]

• [October 09, 2002]   PayCircle Releases WSDL Specification Version 1.0 for Mobile Payment.    An announcement from PayCircle describes the release of the PayCircle Payment Web Service Specification 1.0 for public review. The specification contains WSDL sources, XML schema definitions, and supporting documents, together with use case scenarios. PayCircle is "a vendor-independent non-profit organization; its main focus is to accelerate the use of payment technology and to develop or adopt open payment APIs based on XML, SOAP, Java and other Internet languages. The PayCircle API specifications provide standard payment interfaces for merchants, content and application service provider with the expectation of making payment transaction easier for mobile users, which is essential for future market growth. The PayCircle consortium was formed January 2002 to define standard APIs for mobile payments, regardless of the payment systems used by application or service providers. Currently the large number of incompatible payment systems has hindered the growth and uptake of m-commerce. PayCircle defines open and uniform interfaces based on existing standards." [Full context]

• [October 09, 2002]   Microsoft 'XDocs' Office Product Supports Custom-Defined XML Schemas.    Microsoft officials have announced a new 'XDocs' Office product with scheduled availablity in the middle of 2003. XDocs "looks and feels like a traditional word-processing program, but has all the sophisticated data-capture capabilities of a forms package. Built from the ground up to work with XML, 'XDocs' can gather information that has been generated from documents in which customers can define their own schema, or the structure and the type of content that each data element can contain. 'XDocs' can then integrate that information with existing databases and servers, making it easier to reuse data across the enterprise or via XML Web services." According to Microsoft XML Architect Jean Paoli, XDocs represents "an end-user product that at its core understands XML using customer-driven schema." XDocs exemplifies "the vision behind Microsoft's overall XML Web Services strategy: to make it easy to create, access, and share XML data between different systems on the network... Because XDocs understands XML at its core, customers can define their own business-specific schema using the latest XML standards... it lets organizations determine for themselves what kind of data they want to gather. Native support of XML also means XDocs can send data using these customer-defined schemas to backend systems via XML Web services. XDocs is the first tool that can gather and send, or receive and read, XML data from a Web service without having to first translate the data to the .xml file format. The benefits of this are enormous: because XML is the native file format of all information that is gathered, XDocs reduces translation errors and the need to do custom programming, thus reducing development time and costs. This level of support in XDocs also lowers the cost of developing solutions that use this data, because the data is represented and structured the way you need it from the very beginning." [Full context]

• [October 08, 2002]   Entrust Announces New Secure Transaction Platform and Proposed Security Standards.    Announcements from Entrust on 2002-10-07 outline a comprehensive vision and product delivery roadmap for web services security, to be offered through the Entrust Secure Transaction Platform. "Developed using open industry standards, these services initially include: (1) the Entrust Identification Service, designed to enable validation of federated and non-federated identities across a spectrum of standards-based identification methods, including digital certificates and UserID/passwords. This capability enhances Web services application security by managing multiple identification methods; it also allows organizations to centrally specify which identities are accepted for Web services transactions; (2) The Entrust Entitlements Service, which implements the Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML) standard protocol that enables applications to validate that an identity has a right to interact with specific Web services; (3) The Entrust Verification Service, which supports accountability and integrity for more trusted transactions through centralized digital signature and time stamping capabilities, implemented using standards-compliant XML Digital Signatures." Entrust announced that it has submitted a set of related security standards proposals for Web services to OASIS. "These standards proposals specify open, XML protocols for digital signature and timestamping services operating in a Web services context." [Full context]

• [October 08, 2002]   Exchangable Faceted Metadata Language (XFML) Version 1.0.    A communiqué from Peter Van Dijck announces the version 1.0 release of the XFML Core - eXchangeable Faceted Metadata Language. XFML Core "is an open XML format for publishing and sharing hierarchical faceted metadata and indexing efforts. XFML is a model to express topics, organised in hierarchies or trees within mutually exclusive containers called facets. It also expresses indexing efforts: metadata you have assigned to pages. It lets you publish this information in an open, XML based format. Finally, XFML lets you build connections between different XFML maps, by indicating that a topic in one map is equal to a topic in another map (we call this connecting topics), or that a topic is described on a certain resource (a webpage usually; we call this published subject indicators). Facetmap, an application to browse faceted metadata, was the first application to import XFML... The real power of XFML lies in the concept of connecting topics. This allows you to reuse indexing efforts. It means you don't have to index the entire web yourself, you can reuse parts of other XFML maps. Metadata authoring applications that take advantage of this concept are being developed." [Full context]

• [October 08, 2002]   HR-XML Consortium Announces Employee Stock Plan Interface Standard.    A new specification produced by the HR-XML Consortium Employee Share Plans Workgroup has been approved as an HR-XML Recommendation. The Employee Stock Plans Interface 1.0 specification defines standard, vendor-neutral data definitions for the transfer of stock plan data. The standard "promises new efficiencies and cost savings for employers, third-party administrators, brokers, and other stakeholders involved in the administration of stock-based compensation programs. In addition, the specification will enable easy compilation of data required for reporting and compliance." The Version 1.0 release includes ten XML schemas as well as primary prose document. This initial version of the specification is designed to support the administration of stock option programs. It describes the elements required to exchange data related to the administration of employee share plans, including the expected usage of those elements, and the business processes meant to be supported. A future version will address employee stock purchase plans and other types of plans. [Full context]

• [October 08, 2002]   NTT Communications Launches Asia's First UDDI Registry.    NTT Communications Corporation has announced the October 9, 2002 launch of "Asia's first UDDI Business Registry based on the Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) specifications, joining IBM, Microsoft and SAP in providing a completely open public registry with a standard access method for companies to register their services and search for business partners' services online." In July 2002 NTT Com and IBM announced a collaborative arrangement for building NTT Com's UDDI Business Registry using IBM's WebSphere and DB2 products and technologies. "The UDDI Business Registry is an online directory that enables companies to register, search and dynamically share information completely free of charge. NTT Com joined the UDDI Operators Council in December 2001 to become Asia's first UDDI Business Registry node operator. Information is registered in a unified format as defined by the UDDI specifications. Information registered in the database of each registry node operator is regularly copied to the other operators' databases, assuring a consistent, worldwide network of registered information. As part of registering its own services in the registry, NTT Com plans to develop new business-to-business (B2B) Web Services and thereby establish the company as a new leader in this field. Like the registries currently operated by IBM, Microsoft and SAP, NTT Com's registry will be based on the UDDI Version 2 specifications." [Full context]

• [October 07, 2002]   W3C Specifications for XML Encryption Released as Proposed Recommendations.    The W3C XML Encryption Working Group has released Proposed Recommendation specifications for XML Encryption Syntax and Processing and Decryption Transform for XML Signature. Pending review of comments from the W3C Advisory Committee Members and the public, the specifications may reach Recommendation status after November 14, 2002. The XML Encryption document "specifies a process for encrypting data and representing the result in XML. The data may be arbitrary data (including an XML document), an XML element, or XML element content. The result of encrypting data is an XML Encryption element which contains or references the cipher data." The Decryption document "specifies an XML Signature 'decryption transform' that enables XML Signature applications to distinguish between those XML Encryption structures that were encrypted before signing (and must not be decrypted) and those that were encrypted after signing (and must be decrypted) for the signature to validate. XML Encryption is a method whereby XML content can be transformed such that it is discernable only to the intended recipients, and opaque to all others. There are many applications for such a specification given the increasing importance of XML on the Internet and Web including the protection of payment and transaction information." [Full context]

• [October 02, 2002]   New Website for Layered Markup and Annotation Language (LMNL).    A communiqué from Jeni Tennison announces an online collection of resources for the Layered Markup and Annotation Language (LMNL), first introduced at the 2002 Extreme Markup Languages Conference 2002 in Montréal. Project principals include Jeni Tennison, Gavin Thomas Nicol, and Wendell Piez. LMNL, pronounced 'liminal', "is an experimental approach to digital text encoding that supports, in SGML/XML terms, overlapping elements (ranges in LMNL) and structured attributes (annotations in LMNL)." The Extreme paper by Tennison and Piez presented LMNL as a solution to the challenge of representing multiple hierarchies within a single document and annotating existing tree structures with type information (as in the PSVI). The layered data model is based on the Core Range Algebra investigated by Gavin Nichol; this data model views documents as strings over which span a number of named ranges, each of which can themselves have associated metaranges with their own internal structure. The development team has now published a simple tutorial for LMNL and continues to address the "interesting challenges of extracting tree models, writing schema, query, and transformation languages." Initial online specifications cover; (1) the core LMNL Data Model, (2) a Reified Data Model which is used to describe physical documents that represent LMNL documents, and (3) a draft LMNL Object Model (LOM) API which specifies an object-oriented API for the LMNL data model. A public mailing list is dedicated to the discussion of LMNL and its applications. [Full context]

• [October 01, 2002]   UN/CEFACT Releases ebXML Core Component Technical Specification for Second Public Review.    A posting from Hartmut Hermes (UN/CEFACT Core Component Project Team Lead) and Klaus-Dieter Naujok (Techniques and Methodologies Group Chair) announces the release of the UN/CEFACT - ebXML Core Component Technical Specification Version 1.85 for Public Review provided by its Open Development Process. Under the UN/CEFACT Open Development Process, all interested parties have the opportunity to review, comment on, and contribute to Technical Specifications. The public review period ends 22-November-2002. The ebXML Core Component solution described in the specification "presents a methodology for developing a common set of semantic building blocks that represent the general types of business data in use today and provides for the creation of new business vocabularies and restructuring of existing business vocabularies. The Core Components User Community consists of business people, business document modellers and business data modellers, Business Process modellers, and application developers of different organisations that require interoperability of business information. This interoperability covers both interactive and batch exchanges of business data between applications through the use of Internet and Web based information exchanges as well as traditional Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) systems." [Full context]

Earlier in 2002 Q3...

• [September 30, 2002]   IBM alphaWorks Releases UDDI Registry Extensions.    An IBM alphaWorks development team has released a package of extensions that enhance IBM WebSphere UDDI product with advanced search capabilities. These UDDI Registry Extensions support Version 1.1.1 of the IBM WebSphere UDDI Registry. The new UDDI Registry Extensions provide "advanced search capabilities that enable the formation of complex queries comprising search criteria from two standard UDDI 'find' APIs, find_business and find_service, all in one query. With these advanced search capabilities, requesters can find businesses with services of specific names or in a specific category and vice versa to find services owned by businesses that match specified criteria. Such capabilities are not available with current UDDI search technology and these searches cannot be done without much effort. To make equivalent queries with the current UDDI search technology, the client search requester must perform two steps: (1) Issue two queries: a find_business query and a find_service query, and (2) Process the two sets of results returned by the queries and perform the appropriate intersection of the results, which is complex and error-prone." [Full context]

• [September 30, 2002]   US Internal Revenue Service Establishes Online XML Developers' Forum for Employment Tax E-file System.    The US Internal Revenue Service has set up an online "94x XML Developers' Forum" to provide information and technical guidance for software developers interested in developing software for the new Employment Tax e-file System in XML. The website provides links to the relevant XML Schemas, technical documents, news, and announcements. Supported tax forms include: Form 940 - Employer's Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return (Forma 940-PR in Spanish), Form 941 - Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return (Form 941-PR in Spanish), Form 941-SS - Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return, Form 941c - Supporting Statement to Correct Information, and XML PIN Registration. An Employment Tax e-file System Implementation and User Guide and a Preliminary Guide to Creating 94x Return Transmission Files provid