Microsoft Corp announced the release of the Microsoft XML Parser for incorporation by third party developers into their applications. The Microsoft XML Parser, which is freely redistributable and compliant with the W3C XML 1.0 specification, allows developers to support XML in any or all of the presentation, business logic or storage elements of an application. ISVs, including Allaire Corp., Novell Inc. and Object Design Inc., announced their intent to use the Microsoft XML Parser to build XML support into next-generation products. The parser is available for download at http://msdn.microsoft.com/xml/ at no charge. In addition to enabling ISVs to incorporate the Microsoft XML Parser into any part of their applications, Microsoft is also working to integrate the parser directly into all of its products used for building Windows Distributed interNet Applications (Windows DNA). XML support and integration is available today in other Microsoft software. By virtue of its componentized design, it is easily integrated with any Windows operating system-based application and programmed using any programming or scripting language such as ECMAScript, Java, Perl, Python, SQL, the Visual Basic development system, the Visual C++ development system or VBScript. Further, it supports the W3C XML Document Object Model (DOM), the XML Stylesheet Language (XSL) W3C working draft and the XML 1.0 Namespaces Recommendation. In addition to developing software for manipulating XML data, Microsoft is also working to facilitate the open definition of standard XML vocabularies for specific industries and applications through the BizTalk initiative. BizTalk is an XML framework for both application integration and electronic commerce that defines a common set of guidelines for how Microsoft, its associates and other industry groups can standardize the interchange of business data between applications. www.microsoft.com