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Understood. I've seen similar rules and regulations.
We
don't have to like them, but they are there and
we can
smooth the path if we accept these authorities
and
engage them wisely.
XML
1.0 is ready for prime time. The issues are with
the
sibling specifications. I think they have to look
at
which are and are not implemented and resident
on
some number of platforms and ready to use.
DOM,
for example, looks solid. XSLT looks solid.
XLinks
may be solid but I don't see them in use
yet. I agree that there should be some
means
similar to ISO HTML and VRML to
move a
specification to a standards organization
when
it is proven, implemented, and widely
available. I believe that meets the criteria
for
standardization.
As for
XML and SQL, there are problems here.
I watched a SQLServer 2000 demo
last night
that
blew my socks off, but the changes to
the
SQL syntax could not be standard at this
point. For this reason, in procurements, some
leeway
is granted case by case. The negotiators
have
to be well-informed and cautious. Usually
when I
have dealt with organizations for whom
such
things are important, there is also commensurate
expertise even if they require a kid with a propellor
on his
head to explain the acronyms.
Len Bullard
Intergraph Public
Safety
clbullar@ingr.com
http://www.mp3.com/LenBullard
Ekam
sat.h, Vipraah bahudhaa vadanti.
Daamyata. Datta.
Dayadhvam.h
What Ken North originally asked is if taking XML to
the standards ecology is a good idea to enable contract-based
work which requires citing a standard from a credible standards
organization is a good idea. It is.
Len,
I think the
rationale for an ISO/IEC standard includes government contract
rules, participation in other activities, and acceptance by the IT/ISV
community.
HIPAA is about
healthcare transactions, but we'll see other e-commerce scenarios that
involve governments that will mandate standards. There will also
be domain-specific DTDs and schemas that are advanced
to ISO as part of other standards. Jonathan Borden explained a
recent example in this Dr. Dobb's thread:
One of the big interests in XML is as an
enabling technology for global e-commerce. The World Trade
Organization already has an alliance with ISO and promotes ISO
standards for trading purposes.
There's also the question of acceptance by ISVs
and IT organizations. I still get comments such as "Is XML
something we should be looking at? We use SQL because it's a standard, but
we wonder whether XML is ready for prime time."
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