The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has announced the release of the Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.1 Specification and Mobile SVG Profiles: SVG Tiny and SVG Basic as W3C Recommendations. "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 SVG 1.1 specification defines the features and syntax for Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) as a modularized language; the DTD is now divided up into smaller, more flexible functional building blocks that can be reassembled in different ways for different purposes. The Mobile SVG Profiles document defines two mobile profiles of SVG 1.1. The first profile, SVG Tiny, is defined to be suitable for cellphones; the second profile, SVG Basic, is suitable for PDAs."

From Antoine Quint (Fuchsia Design) and Chris Lilley (SVG Working Group Chair): "If you take a look at at the FAQ you will be able to see pictures of real mobile phones running real SVG Tiny content. The SVG animations are also available and can view them with the Adobe SVG Viewer 3.0 since SVG Tiny is fully compatible with SVG 1.0 as a strict subset..."

Bibliographic information:

Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.1 Specification. W3C Recommendation 14-January-2003. Edited by Jon Ferraiolo (Adobe Systems), FUJISAWA Jun (Canon), Dean Jackson (W3C/CSIRO). Version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-SVG11-20030114/. Latest version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/SVG11/. Previous version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/2002/PR-SVG11-20021115/. Also in PDF and ZIP archive HTML formats. Appendix A supplies the SVG XML Document Type Definition.

Mobile SVG Profiles: SVG Tiny and SVG Basic. W3C Recommendation 14-January-2003. Edited by Tolga Capin (Nokia). Version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-SVGMobile-20030114/. Latest version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/SVGMobile/. Previous version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/2002/PR-SVGMobile-20021115/.

SVG Overview:

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. Text can be in any XML namespace suitable to the appplication, which enhances searchability and accessibility of the SVG graphics. The feature set includes nested transformations, clipping paths, alpha masks, filter effects, template objects and extensibility.

SVG drawings can be dynamic and interactive. The Document Object Model (DOM) for SVG, which includes the full XML DOM, allows for straightforward and efficient vector graphics animation via scripting. A rich set of event handlers such as onmouseover and onclick can be assigned to any SVG graphical object. Because of its compatibility and leveraging of other Web standards, features like scripting can be done on SVG elements and other XML elements from different namespaces simultaneously within the same Web page.

Highlights for 2003-01 Recommendations: [excerpted from the announcement]

The graphical capabilities of SVG 1.1 are the same as those of the widely implemented SVG 1.0, which has been a W3C Recommendation since 4 September 2001. What has changed is the way the language is defined. For SVG 1.0, the Document Type Definition (DTD) was a single, monolithic unit. In SVG 1.1, the DTD is divided up into smaller, more flexible functional building blocks that can be reassembled in different ways for different purposes. The SVG Working Group used the same proven modularization techniques pioneered by the HTML Working Group for XHTML modularization.

There is an explosion of interest in handheld devices and mobile phones which have color screens, improved processing power and can deliver enhanced multimedia functionality. These still fall short of the capabilities of desktop and laptop machines, but are now capable of displaying Web standard technologies such as XHTML, SMIL, and SVG. W3C has used the SVG 1.1 building blocks to make two profiles or subsets of full SVG; SVG Tiny, aimed at multimedia capable cellphones such as the recently announced 3G units, and SVG Basic for handheld and palmtop computers.

Instead of sending text messages or canned, bitmap logos, SVG Tiny now makes it possible to send a colorful animated multimedia message. Instead of juggling a laptop or taking a static printout to the factory floor, construction site, hospital ward, or trading room, SVG Basic now enables the mobile professional to consult up to date, interactive, informative graphics on a convenient pocket computer which is dynamically updated over a wireless network connected to the XML information hub of the enterprise.

Another way that W3C and others are making use of the modular SVG 1.1 building blocks is to combine them with building blocks from other W3C technologies to produce more powerful, integrated solutions. Examples include the combination of SVG and XForms to construct graphically rich, interactive input forms, or SVG and SMIL Basic to combine vector graphics with streaming audio and video, or XHTML, MathML and SVG for scientific and technical communication including text with headings, lists and tables; mathematical equations, and interactive graphs and diagrams.

Commercial services using SVG Mobile are now being deployed, including location based services using geographical metadata embedded in the SVG. The SVG Working Group is pleased by both the number of SVG 1.1 and SVG Mobile implementations and their quality of rendering and interoperability. Fifteen implementations were tested in November 2002, including SVG Tiny implementations from BitFlash, CSIRO, KDDI, Nokia, ZOOMON and SVG Basic implementations from BitFlash, CSIRO, and Intesis; others were also under development but were not tested at that time.

As a result of these compatibility trials, SVG implementations are available now from multiple vendors for integration into cellphones or deployment on PDAs in addition to the increasing number of implementations for desktop and laptop computers. Conformance to one of the two profiles, rather than each manufacturer choosing their own subset, ensures widespread interoperability of content across mobile devices from different manufacturers. This interoperability has three advantages for content creators: lower development costs, wider availability, and a trust in being able to display their content in any compliant implementation. As Mobile SVG is a true subset of SVG 1.1, all conformant desktop players will correctly display all Mobile SVG content, ensuring the Mobile and desktop worlds continue to share a common, standards-based Web.