ISO/IEC JTC1/SC18/WG8 **N1834**

# ISO/IEC JTC1/SC18/WG8 Document Processing and Related Communication--- Document Description and Processing Languages {#isoiec-jtc1sc18wg8-document-processing-and-related-communication-document-description-and-processing-languages .Heading-0-(nobreak)}

  -------------------- --------------------------------------------------
  Title:               Annual Report of the Convenor of WG8 to SC18

  Source:              J. D. Mason

  Project:             All WG8 projects

  Status of document:  Convenor\'s report (prepared before the conclusion
                       of the May 1996 meeting of WG8)

  Requested action:    For information of SC18

  Summary of major     WG8 project status, target dates, assignments,
  points:              meeting schedule

  Date:                24 May 1996

  Refer To:            WG8 N1835

  Supersedes:          WG8 N1789

  Reply To:            Dr. James D. Mason\
                       (ISO/IEC JTC1/SC18/WG8 Convenor)\
                       Oak Ridge National Laboratory\
                       Information Management Services\
                       Bldg. 2506, M.S. 6302, P.O. Box 2008\
                       Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6302 U.S.A.\
                       Telephone: +1 423 574-6973\
                       Facsimile: +1 423 574-6983\
                       Network: masonjd@ornl.gov\
                       http://www.ornl.gov/sgml/wg8/wg8home.htm\
                       ftp://ftp.ornl.gov/pub/sgml/wg8/
  -------------------- --------------------------------------------------

# Annual Report of the Convenor of WG8 to SC18 {#annual-report-of-the-convenor-of-wg8-to-sc18 .Heading-0}

# Title of Working Group

Document Description and Processing Languages

# Convenor: Dr. James David MasonTerms of Reference

To produce standards for languages and resources for the description and
processing of compound and hypermedia documents, including:

Standard Generalized Markup Language and support facilities

Document processing architecture and formatting for documents
represented in SGML

Final-form document architecture and Standard Page Description Language

Font architecture, interchange format, and services

Glyph architecture and registration procedures

Hypermedia document structuring language and application resources

Content architectures and content notations for document architectures
defined or supported by \"Document Description and Processing
Languages\" standards. (**Note:** A content architecture may be a
binding of a content notation defined by SC18/WG5 or other
standardization bodies.)

# Structure of Working Group

## WG8/OWG1 DSSSL

Rapporteur: Ms. Sharon Adler

## WG8/OW2 Fonts

Rapporteur: Mr. Alan Griffee

## WG8/OWG3 SGML

Rapporteur: Dr. Charles F. Goldfarb

## WG8/OWG4 SPDL

Rapporteur: Dr. Steve Strasen

Rapporteur: Mr. Steve Zilles

## WG8/OWG5 Hypermedia Languages

Rapporteur: Dr. Charles F. Goldfarb

# Annual Status Summary

Since the 1995 plenary of SC18 held at Dublin, WG8 has held two regular
meetings and one meeting of rapporteur groups. Participation has
remained at an average of 21 experts in attendance, representing eight
national bodies (Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Norway, United
Kingdom, and United States), three external liaison bodies (SGML Users\'
Group, Association for Font Information Interchange \[AFII\], and CERN).
We have also had participants from a nation that is not a member of
JTC1, Taiwan, as guests of AFII and the SGML Users\' Group. WG8 also
established liaison with a Working Group of the IETF to develop an
Internet RFC on the use of SGML in the MIME file-interchange mechanism.

In the past year, WG8 has published two standards, ISO/IEC 10180, SPDL
and ISO/IEC 10179, DSSSL. In addition to our completed ISO standards and
technical reports, we have two projects at DIS status, two projects that
have returned from CD ballot, and new projects under development. For
this high level of activity, WG8 can continue to give several reasons.
Aside from the general interest of WG8\'s projects to the publishing and
technical documentation community, we have continued to benefit from the
many organizational adoptions of applications of our work, including an
increasing number of governmental and private bodies. We are
particularly pleased at the increased presence of SGML on the Internet,
notably through the World-Wide Web (WWW).

WG8 continues moving towards fully electronic distribution of its
documents. The WG8 Convenor maintains both an FTP server
(ftp://ftp.ornl.gov/pub/sgml/wg8/) and a WWW server
(http://www.ornl.gov/sgml/wg8/wg8home.htm) to provide access to WG8
documents. WWW browsers are available that allow viewing of SGML
documents tagged with user-defined SGML applications, in addition to the
well-known HTML application. With this in mind, WG8 has developed a DTD
for its internal papers and will be distributing them over the Web.

We expect that the next year will maintain the current momentum,
sustaining the rapid development of our projects. Our continuing high
level of participation this year has been gratifying.

# 1994--95 Meetings

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  *Regular meetings*

  Broomfield, Colorado 15--20 October 1995

  Munich, Germany 20--24 May 1996

  *Special meetings, DSSSL*

  Paris, France November 1995
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

# Project Summaries

WG8 presently has its original two primary projects, JTC1.18.15,
Computer Languages for Processing Text,and JTC1.18.27, Description and
Identification of Glyph Fonts. These are divided into subprojects, which
are listed in detail in the attached Programmeof Work. WG8 has also been
assigned several later projects, also described below and listed in the
Programme.

## Project JTC1.18.15.1, SGML(Standard Generalized Markup Language, ISO 8879:1986)

SGML is a completed standard for which an amendment has been published.
It was reaffirmed by JTC1 balloting at its five-year review in 1991. A
comprehensive internal review to determine what revisions or
enhancements are desired as a result of evolving user requirements
during SGML\'s years of use is continuing. The process of finalizing
DSSSL and developing a technical corrigendum for HyTime has resulted in
additional information that can contribute to a potential revision. The
work item for a binary representation of SGML documents (Project
JTC1.18.40) is being held for further development in conjunction with
the revision of the primary standard.

## Project JTC1.18.15.2, Model

Although WG8 has balloted PDTR 11585 *Operational Model for Document
Description and Processing Languages,* no further work has been done on
the project. In the absence of a project editor, WG8 recommends that the
project be withdrawn.

## Project JTC1.18.3, Vocabulary (TR 9544)

The Vocabulary was published several years ago; no work is currently
being done.

## Project JTC1.18.15.5, Text-Entry Systems

Only one project remains under this item, Project JTC1.18.15.5.1,
*Guidelines for SGML Syntax-Directed*

*Editors* (ISO TR 10037), which was published as ISO/IEC TR 10037.

## Project JTC1.18.15.6, Text Composition

Both projects in this group have resulted in new standards being
published this year. Both projects worked with

### WG4 on the Document Printing Application.

## Project JTC1.18.15.6.1, DSSSL (Document Style Semantics and Specification Language\>, ISO/IEC 10179

DSSSL was published in April 1996.

## Project JTC1.18.15.6.2, SPDL (StandardPage Description Language\>, ISO/IEC 10180

SPDL was published in December 1995.

## Project JTC1.18.15.7 SGML Support Facilities

The first and third parts of this project, *SDIF* (ISO 9069) and
*Registration* (ISO/IEC 9070), have been published. An amendment to
ISO/IEC 9070 was approved that provides for equivalencies of structured
names in SGML and ASN.1 representations of documents and makes ISO 9070
a generalized naming standard that is aligned with ISO 8824. A second
edition of ISO/IEC 9070 has been published, and another amendment is
planned that will change its title and scope to reflect its expanded
functions.

*Techniques for Using SGML* (ISO TR 9573) is being revised to add some
new parts and to merge informative material that has been carried as
parts of other projects. The part on public entities for mathematical
and scientific publishing (including material that was in the annexes to
ISO 8879) has already been published as Part 13. The part that documents
the SGML-based system used by ISO Central Secretariat to produce texts
of standards has also been published as Part 11(a technical corrigendum
has been proposed for this part). Another part on public entities for
non-Latin alphabets has been balloted as Part 15 and ballot responses
are being considered. A part on Using SGML for Computer to Computer
Interchange (Notation Declarations for Data Encoding Standards ) is
being developed as Part 9 and has been sent for PDTR processing. Parts
1--6, tutorials on the SGML language and basic techniques, await
completion of the revision process for ISO 8879:1986.

## Project JTC1.18.27, Fonts

ISO/IEC 9541, Parts 1, *Architecture*, 2, *Interchange Format*, and 3,
*Glyph Shape Representation*, and ISO/IEC 10036, *Glyph and Glyph
Collection Registration Procedures*, have been published. A text for
Part 4 of 9541, *Application-Specific Requirements*, has been balloted
as a CD; a disposition of comments and new text are being prepared.
Technical Corrigendum 3 to 9541-1 and Technical Corrigendum 2 to 9541-2
were processed and published. PDAM 1 to 9541-1 has been balloted. PDAM 1
to 10036 was drafted and balloted; comments were resolved and DAM 1 is
being balloted.

The Font Services project (JTC1.18.33) has a new editor. A WD has been
circulated for comment.

## Project JTC1.18.36, ISO/IEC DIS 13673 Conformance Testing for SGML Systems

This project, developed within the U.S. National Body (though with
international consultation), has been moved into JTC1. Final text has
been prepared and will be delivered for publication.

## Project JTC1.18.39.1, ISO/IEC CD 10743, Standard Music Description Language

(SMDL)

A DIS text for DIS 10743 has been balloted, and results are being
analyzed.

## Project JTC1.18.39.2, Hypermedia/Time-based Structuring Language (HyTime)

ISO/IEC 10744 is a published standard. A technical corrigendum was
balloted in 1995, and a final text is being prepared. WG8 expects that
the TC will result in republication of the standard.

## Project JTC1.18.43, ISO/IEC CD 13240, Standard Multimedia/Hypermedia Scripting Language (SMSL)

A text for CD 13240 has been balloted.

# Programme of Work, Assignment, and Schedule of Meetings, together with the Recommendations of the April Meeting

WG8 documents N1735 and N1736, attached.