Category: Content technology news (Page 478 of 637)

RosettaNet has released a new version of its implementation framework core, which provides the foundational processes and message packaging specifications needed for supply chain partners to conduct e-business using RosettaNet standards. Version 2.0 of the RosettaNet Implementation Framework (RNIF), based directly on the real-world implementation experience from consortium partners, now supports intermediaries such as e-marketplaces and exchanges, accommodates complex business messages, and contains additional provisions for security, privacy and non-repudiation. The new implementation framework supports complex business messages. For example, companies can now send supporting files such as .pdf, .gif, or other binary documents with their XML-based RosettaNet business messages. This capability can greatly enhance the quality of the information transmitted between trading partners. Additional security measures have been added as well. Companies can take advantage of additional privacy and integrity measures such as digital signatures and payload encryption by using S/MIME. The S/MIME specification replaces RosettaNet’s previous format and keeps the RNIF closely aligned with other cross-industry implementation frameworks. In an effort to assist small- to medium-sized businesses with limited capabilities in their applications, RosettaNet has included support for synchronous responses within RNIF v2.0. Using this support, an application replies to a request by returning the results on the same connection on which the request was received. This support allows simple applications incapable of complex server-like behavior to participate in a RosettaNet-based trading relationship. RNIF v2.0 also includes support for HTTP and SMTP transfer protocols to accommodate e-marketplaces, exchanges, portals and other intermediaries that route information on behalf of buyers and sellers. RNIF v2.0 specifies what information to add to message headers to enable these intermediaries to correctly route the business messages to their final destinations. RNIF v2.0 has been approved by the RosettaNet membership and now enters its validation phase where it will gain significant industry implementation use. During this validation period, RosettaNet encourages partners to implement the framework. Implementers should expect minor changes to the specification as a result of implementation experience gained during the validation phase. RNIF v1.1 will continue to be supported by the consortium until the next major release. RNIF v2.0 can now be downloaded from the RosettaNet Web site at www.rosettanet.org

March Networks Corporation and Ottawa- based Mainsource Software Corporation announced that March Networks will acquire Mainsource through an exchange of cash and shares. The acquisition, the third for March Networks since Terry Matthews launched the new company in August 2000, is expected to be final before February 2001. The Mainsource acquisition provides March Networks with a highly-scalable content management system that will become a key capability for the delivery of the many complex and distributed IP broadband applications that the company has identified. The multi-platform architecture of the system supports all industry standard database platforms, including Oracle, Sun and Microsoft. In December 2000, March Networks announced the acquisition of Toronto-based Infopreneur to expand the company’s web-centric content delivery expertise. The company’s first acquisition took place in November 2000 when it acquired Ottawa-based Elcombe Systems Limited in a move to gain technology and domain-knowledge of the health care market. www.mainsrc.com, www.marchnetworks.com

Bowne Global Solutions announced an advanced tool for the creation and management of terminology assets. TermGLOBAL facilitates the creation of a linguistic repository capable of storing an entire organization’s linguistic resources in a single location, accessible through a web browser. The TermGLOBAL linguistic repository is a multi-tier system which uses Unicode throughout the application. Based on XML, it is a B2B application that serves multiple clients, both web and non-web. TermGLOBAL is accessible by Bowne linguists and clients, who have access to general as well as proprietary terminology, through a secure Internet gateway. The advantages of the new product include opportunities for increasing leverage besides those currently gained through Translation Memories, as well as the establishment of Pattern translation, or the ability to use patterns with variables in order to translate identical linguistic structures. Planned enhancements include a dictionary resource for linguistic tools, in which several Bowne localization tools will use the linguistic- and meta-data in the repository to assess the level of difficulty and other project parameters. The database may also be used as a corpus for R&D objectives, enabling the identification of linguistic behaviors, structures, and other features in order to create tools that can be used for multiple purposes and ultimately to create the base for a Natural Language Processing environment. www.bowneglobal.com

Dow Jones & Company announced it is providing its Market Data Markup Language to a financial industry consortium as a starting point toward development of an XML-based global standard for market data delivery. The Market Data Markup Language (MDML), developed by Dow Jones is now posted at www.fisd.net, the web site of the Financial Information Services Division (FISD) of the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). The FISD — a forum for business and technical issues related to the distribution of financial information — recently formed a working group to coordinate XML efforts in the market data industry. Dow Jones contributed its MDML to speed development of a common framework to publish market data. The Dow Jones MDML has been in production for about two years at The Wall Street Journal Online at WSJ.com. The language is used for posting text and statistical data on the web site, and as a system interchange format within Dow Jones and with entities such as Factiva, a joint venture of Dow Jones and Reuters. The FISD market data work will be done in coordination with other XML initiatives, including XBRL, or Extensible Business Reporting Language. The XBRL consortium (www.xbrl.org) is developing XML vocabularies for corporate earnings and regulatory filings. Dow Jones, Reuters Group, and Reuters’ Lipper subsidiary are all participants in XBRL. The FISD effort also dovetails with two XML standards developed by the International Press Telecommunications Council, of which Dow Jones, Associated Press, and Reuters are all members: NewsML is an XML model for packaging and managing news objects of any media type; the News Industry Text Format is an XML application for markup of news text. www.fisd.net

IXOS Software AG and 80-20 Software have signed a partnership agreement. Both companies will work jointly on the next generation of the IXOS-ExchangeARCHIVE product line. The partnership will provide global enterprise customers with comprehensive knowledge and eBusiness document management solutions. First joint products are expected to be launched in early 2001. The partnership covers joint product development and joint marketing for the 80-20 product line, which includes the retrieval server 80-20 Discovery and the personal portal 80-20 Retriever. 80-20 Discovery is able to arrange information according to concepts rather than keywords. 80-20 Retriever is a new personal portal, embedded in Microsoft Outlook, which uses automatic categorization technology, and is designed to handle personal file and email management. Both companies see significant growth opportunities by providing integrated solutions for the new Microsoft Exchange platform and the forthcoming portal and document management server, codenamed “Tahoe”. www.ixos.com, www.80-20.com

DataChannel Inc. and Talk2 Technology, Inc. announced a strategic alliance today that will allow users to access and voice-navigate through the DataChannel EIP. The companies have entered into a joint development and marketing agreement integrating DataChannel’s DataChannel Server (DCS) 4.1 and Talk2’s ViPrNET (pronounced “Vipernet”) voice infrastructure. Using a telephone, enterprise customers may now access and interact with their enterprise information anywhere, anytime. Talk2’s proprietary ViPrNET architecture is a carrier-class technology, capable of supporting tens-of-millions of users. ViPrNET runs on high performance, Unix-based computing platforms and is technology and platform agnostic. The integration of the two products is founded on DataChannel’s XML development and the two companies’ commitment to an XML-based architecture. These complimentary technologies ensure that voice access to critical information can scale with the growth of the EIP to potentially millions of users. Since EIP users access mission-critical information, security of the corporate firewall is extended by ViPrNET’s Spontaneous Virtual Private Networking technology (sVPN). Each time a user dials into the portal to access information–on any device–the sVPN creates a secure session without having to modify the existing firewall, giving users seamless, high-security access to their information. www.talk2.com, www.datachannel.com

eBusiness Technologies (eBT) announced that it has entered into a strategic alliance with Epicentric, Inc. The alliance combines Epicentric’s ability to establish a network of e-business centers within a common management structure with eBusiness Technologies’ content management and workflow automation capabilities. Epicentric’s solutions combine various sources of information and tools — outside syndicators, internal data streams and Web-based applications — and enable its customers to provide custom interfaces and different views of those data sources. eBT’s engenda content management and workflow automation solution helps organizations manage the information from various content sources as well as original content. The alliance agreement calls for the two companies to jointly develop a tight integration of their products, providing the customers a streamlined way of managing content through the portal environment. www.epicentric.com, www.ebt.com