StreamServe Inc. announced it has entered into an agreement with Adobe Systems Incorporated to provide support for XML Forms Architecture (XFA), the format of Adobe LiveCycle Designer software. This collaboration provides a common design environment for the production and distribution of business-critical documents in support of both interactive and high-volume output processes. XFA combines the data and capabilities of XML with rich presentation capabilities for multi-channel delivery, including PDF. Adobe LiveCycle Designer enables the creation of dynamic XFA form templates. This software supports XML data and schema bindings, enhances document security with template designs for digital signatures and enables compliance with government accessibility requirements for online forms. With it, anyone with Adobe Reader software can participate in secure, interactive data capture processes that extend to customers, partners or suppliers. Examples include new account applications, bid response or correspondence generation. StreamServe Persuasion permits companies to take information from enterprise applications such as ERP, CRM, SCM and legacy systems and transform it into business correspondence that acts as a dynamic and personalized marketing vehicle for cross-sell, up-sell and brand building. http://www.streamserve.com
Category: Web technologies & information standards (Page 36 of 58)
Here we include topics related to information exchange standards, markup languages, supporting technologies, and industry applications.
As our readers know, we are long-time advocates of open-document formats. Over the past couple of years, we have written a great deal about DITA and formats like ODF, but we also have a lot of experience and interest in DocBook and vertical DTDs such as J2008 for the automotive industry and the various DOD standards. We are clearly reaching a point where interoperability among these standards has become an issue. Organizations are more diverse, more likely to be sharing content between operating groups and with other organizations, and more likely to be sourcing content from a variety of partners, customers, and suppliers. Needless to say, not all of these sources of content will be using the same XML vocabulary; indeed, even two organizations using DITA, for example, will likely have specialized DITA differently.
With this need for interoperability in mind, OASIS has announced a new discussion list, regarding a possible new OASIS Document Standards Interoperability Technical Committee (TC). Details on the list, including how to subscribe, can be found here.
Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq: ADBE) announced that the first public alpha version of Apollo is now available for developers on Adobe Labs. Apollo is the code name for a cross-operating system application runtime that allows web developers to leverage their existing skills in HTML, JavaScript and Ajax, as well as Adobe Flash and Adobe Flex software to build and deploy rich Internet applications (RIAs) on the desktop. Apollo provides people with direct access to Internet applications built with HTML, JavaScript, Flash and PDF without the need to open a browser, offering more reliable interaction with content. With Apollo, people can launch applications directly from their desktops and interact with them offline. When a network connection is available, newly created or changed content can synchronize. The first version of Apollo for developers includes a free SDK that provides a set of command line tools for developing and working with Apollo applications. Web developers can use the Integrated Development Environment (IDE) of their choice, including Adobe tools such as Eclipse-based Flex Builder, Flash, and Dreamweaver to build Apollo applications. The alpha version of the Apollo application runtime, required to run Apollo applications, and the Apollo SDK are available immediately as free downloads from Adobe Labs. The Apollo SDK is available in English. The Apollo runtime and SDK are offered for both Windows and Macintosh operating systems, and future versions will be available for Linux. http://www.adobe.com/go/apollo
The last time I posted on this topic I claimed the controversy over the two applications was no longer interesting. Unless you have to deal with standards organizations’ politics this is still true. However this does not mean that there are not good reasons to keep up with developments of new tools and new (governmental) decisions on adoption of one of the two applications. (Note the use of ‘applications’ is deliberate and correct both from a standards perspective since both ODF and Open XML are ‘XML applications’, and from a product point of view since a decision to use one or the other is, from a practical point of view, a product decision). All our coverage with links to most other historical coverage is here.
For recent updates see:
- An interview with Microsoft’s Tom Robertson, by Mary Jo Foley
- Comments from Microsoft’s Brian Jones, and a podcast of a conversation between Brian and Jon Udell
- Comments from Novell’s Jeff Jaffe’s blog, and
- The latest features of ODF from OASIS.
OASIS announced that its members have approved version 1.1 of the Open Document Format for Office Applications (OpenDocument) as an OASIS Standard, a status that signifies the highest level of ratification. The result of a collaboration between advocacy groups for the disabled and open source and commercial software vendors, this new version of the standard provides key accessibility enhancements to ensure that the OpenDocument format (ODF) addresses the needs of people with disabilities. OpenDocument 1.1 supports users who have low or no vision or who suffer from cognitive impairments. The standard not only provides short alternative descriptive text for document elements such as hyperlinks, drawing objects and image map hot spots, it also offers lengthy descriptions for the same objects should additional help be needed. Other OpenDocument accessibility features include the preservation of structural semantics imported from other file formats, such as headings in tables, and associations between drawings and their captions. The new version of OpenDocument reflects the work of the OASIS OpenDocument Accessibility Subcommittee, which is made up of accessibility experts from IBM, the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI), RNIB, Sun Microsystems, and others. The Subcommittee’s recommendations were incorporated into the OpenDocument specification by members of the OASIS OpenDocument Technical Committee, which includes representatives from Adobe Systems, IBM, Intel, Novell, Sun Microsystems, and others. http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/office/, http://www.oasis-open.org
Bob Doyle alerts us to the next meeting of the Boston Area DITA Users Group. On Tuesday February 13 at 6:30 pm, Judy Kessler will present, “How Sybase Made the Business Case for DITA.”
The meeting starts with light snacks and networking at 6:30 and the presentation starts at 7:00. The meeting will be at the Information Mapping headquarters in Waltham. For directions, click here. Bob asks that if you are planning to attend, please RSVP to Judy Kessler.
For more information on this and future Boston meetings, check the User Group homepage.
Document Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ: DOCX) announced it has completed the acquisition of CambridgeDocs a provider of document transformation and repurposing technology. The acquired technology will allow xPression, to import and repurpose content from popular formats, including Word, HTML, PDF, Excel, RTF, and Adobe FrameMaker, enabling customers to leverage the tens of thousands of documents existing throughout an enterprise without having to manually recreate the content. Once transformed, the content can be made available for delivery through Document Sciences xPression product suite, as well as independently through XML-based Web Services. The transformed content can also be classified and indexed within enterprise information portals, and aggregated, assembled and (re)published in multiple formats, including HTML, PDF, Postscript, IBM AFP, PCL and RTF. In addition to tighter integration with CambridgeDocs technology, Document Sciences will continue to develop CambridgeDoc’s xDoc product suite. The xDoc products sold through OEM software agreements with vendors in the XML content management and publishing area. The entire CambridgeDocs team, located in Cambridge, MA, and Lahore, Pakistan, will be joining the Document Sciences. http://www.docscience.com, http://www.cambridgedocs.com
W3C and OASIS have published WebCGM 2.0, a new industry standard for technical illustrations in electronic documents. WebCGM, which is widely deployed in the defense, aviation, architecture, and transportation industries, has reached new levels of interoperability thanks to this joint effort between OASIS and W3C. Computer Graphics Metafile, or CGM, is an ISO standard for a tree-structured, binary graphics format that has been adopted especially by the technical industries (defense, aviation, transportation, etc) for technical illustration in electronic documents. As the Web emerged as the environment for sharing and creating documents, it became apparent that the best way to use CGM on the Web needed to be clarified, particularly for interactivity such as hyperlinks and hotspots. WebCGM 2.0 adds a DOM (API) specification for programmatic access to WebCGM objects, and a specification of an XML Companion File (XCF) architecture, for externalization of non-graphical metadata. WebCGM 2.0 also builds upon and extends the graphical and intelligent content of WebCGM 1.0. The design criteria for WebCGM aim at a balance between graphical expressive power on the one hand, and simplicity and implementability on the other. A small but powerful set of standardized metadata elements supports the functionalities of hyperlinking and document navigation, picture structuring and layering, and enabling search and query of WebCGM picture content. http://www.oasis-open.org, http://www.w3.org/
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