****************** WELCOME TO SGML NEWSWIRE ****************** * * * To subscribe, send mail to sgmlinfo@avalanche.com. * * * * To receive a current table of contents and instructions * * for ordering back issues, specify "send toc" * * in the message body. * * * * (Please pass along to interested colleagues) * * * ************************************************************** SGML OPEN'S INVOLVEMENT WITH THE WEB ==================================== For immediate release Leading Standards Consortium Set to Enable Document Exchange Between Internet and Corporate Databases Chicago, IL, October 18, 1994 -- At the World Wide Web Conference today, SGML Open announced the formation of a new technical committee -- SGML and the Internet. The committee will provide technical resources and support to facilitate the exchange of documents between the World Wide Web of the Internet and corporate information bases. SGML Open is a non-profit consortium of vendors whose products and services support the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), the international standard (ISO 8879) for the electronic representation and interchange of document-oriented information among users, platforms and applications. Its mission is to accelerate the adoption of SGML, especially within commercial industries. "SGML is the prevailing international standard for the exchange of documents in corporate and government databases, while the SGML application used for exchanging documents on the World Wide Web is the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)," said SGML Open Executive Director Mary Laplante. "One of the first charges for our Internet committee will be to work with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) that is stabilizing and extending HTML." Laplante indicated that the IETF is finalizing HTML version 2.0. "HTML 2.0 is a chance for SGML to hit the streets," said Dan Connolly, software engineer at HaL Software Systems of Austin, TX, and author of the initial HTML 2.0 draft. "While previous HTML versions have only been SGML-like, HTML 2.0 will be real SGML. This opens a whole new set of market opportunities for software tool providers and a richer variety of software, services and support for users." Analysts estimate that more than 90 percent of valuable corporate information is contained in document format and that organizations are seeking ways to store and exchange that information electronically. SGML provides a standard format for storing, retrieving and exchanging the contents and structure of documents electronically. The World Wide Web is the client/server-based information publishing environment on the Internet. Approximately 30 million users worldwide access the Internet, which reportedly links more than two million host computers on more than 30,000 networks. SGML Open members acknowledge that for many Web applications, the current implementation of HTML is adequate. They see SGML Open's role as enabling the delivery of commercial-quality HTML support to corporate users worldwide. The SGML Open committee -- SGML and the Internet -- will work to facilitate communication and mutual assistance between HTML users and developers and the SGML community. Chaired by Steven J. DeRose, chief scientist at Electronic Book Technologies, Inc. in Providence, RI, the committee's agenda will also include: * Assisting organizations that want to leverage corporate information assets by extending the utility of their HTML documents through the use of SGML tool sets and by enabling the use of SGML directly on the Internet. * Working with the World Wide Web users to bring support for longer documents and greater presentation capabilities to the Internet. * Offering the technical resources of SGML Open for review of HTML 3.0 in collaboration with the HTML working group of IETF. Information regarding the committee's actvities can be obtained from SGML Open's World Wide Web server at http://www.sgmlopen.org or by contacting the Consortium's headquarters at: 910 Beaver Grade Road Coraopolis, PA 15108 USA Telephone: +1.412.264.4258 Fax: +1.412.264.6598 Established in 1993, SGML Open is a non-profit, international consortium of product and service providers dedicated to the application and implementation of SGML. SGML Open provides its members with an open forum to address technical issues that will enhance the interoperability of SGML applications and disseminates information describing SGML methodologies, technologies and implementation. The sponsor members of SGML Open include Active Systems, Inc., AIS/Berger-Levrault, ArborText, Inc., ATLIS Consulting Group, Auto-Graphics, Inc., Avalanche Development Company (a subsidiary of Interleaf Inc.), Data Conversion Laboratory, Database Publishing Systems Ltd., Datalogics (a division of Frame Technology Corporation), Electronic Book Technologies, Inc., Exoterica Corporation, Folio Corporation, Frame Technology Corporation, Fulcrum Technologies Inc., Graphic Communications Association, Grif SA, HaL Software Systems, InContext Corporation, InfoAccess Incorporated, InfoDesign Corporation, Information Dimensions, Inc., InterCAP Graphics Systems, Inc., Intergraph Corporation, Interleaf Inc., Logical Design Solutions, Inc., OMI Logistics, Open Text Corporation, Oracle Corporation, Passage Systems Inc., Recording for the Blind, SoftQuad Inc., STEP Sturtz Electronic Publishing GmbH, Texcel, US Lynx, Westinghouse Electric Corporation, WordPerfect Corporation, XSoft, and Xyvision, Inc. * * * Contact: John Nero Creamer Dickson Basford Tel: +1.617.467.1546 Internet: 430-7081@mcimail.com Mary Laplante SGML Open Tel: +1.412.264.4258 Internet: laplante@sgmlopen.com ************************************************************** * SGML NEWSWIRE LIST MANAGER * * * * Linda Turner * * Corporate Communications * * Avalanche * * 4999 Pearl East Circle * * Suite 100 * * Boulder, CO 80301 * * sgmlinfo@avalanche.com * * linda@avalanche.com * * Vox: (303) 449-5032 * * Fax: (303) 449-3246 * **************************************************************