An experimental programming language now available for testing transforms documents and data between specific formats so that documents can be read no matter what application or device is used. It’s posted on a site that is jointly managed by Xerox Corporation and Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) for programmers and software developers who want to try out software from both commercial and academic research centers. The new language, called Circus-DTE, is a research project developed at the Xerox Research Centre of Europe in Grenoble, France. XRCE scientists believe that Circus-DTE could be especially useful when there are multiple document transformations, such as document content processing, Internet publishing, publishing on handheld devices and database-to-XML conversions. For example, processing a customer order requires a series of transformations — data must be input into applications that check inventory and availability, that prepare shipping documentation, that generate an invoice, that process payments and perhaps even publish to the Web so a customer can track progress online. Software developers and programmers wishing to check out Circus-DTE or any of the other technologies can download them from www.alphaAve.com. www.lac.rit.edu, www.parc.com