January 25, 2008 | Comments: (0)
Fearful that Election 2008 will devolve into an e-voting miasma of epic proportions? Well, wax conspiratorial no longer.
At least that's the tenor of today's OASIS announcement of EML (Election Markup Language) 5.0, which has garnered the highest level of ratification the standards body has to offer.
"By providing a uniform, secure, and verifiable way for voting systems to interact, EML safeguards voter confidence in the election process," Patrick Gannon, president and CEO of OASIS, said in a statement. (For the record, Gannon also serves on the U.S. Election Assistance Commission's Technical Guidelines Development Committee.)
The standard, built on XML schemas, covers the election data transaction gamut, from candidate nomination, to voter registration and authentication, to vote casting, confirmation, tabulation, and auditing. It even includes a new VoterID element that is repeatable -- a handy bit of scalability for those governments seeking to extend the list of required modes of identification for its citizens to participate in the election process.
And who do we have to thank for this electoral safeguard standard? A multilateral crossing of myriad corporate aisles, with EDS, IBM, and Oracle topping the list.
Driving the consensus was a mission to "develop a standard for the structured interchange of data among hardware, software, and service providers who engage in any aspect of providing election or voter services to public or private organizations."
Focusing on the interfaces between components of election systems, what the standard doesn't answer for is the security of the systems themselves.
Per the document: "References to security within EML are not to be taken as comprehensive requirements for all election systems in all election scenarios, nor as recommendations or sufficiency of approach when addressing all the security aspects of election system design, implementation or evaluation. In fact, the data security mechanisms described in this document are all optional, enabling compliance with EML without regard for system security at all."
Not exactly a rousing vote of confidence for the standard's ability to ensure the integrity of election results.
Finger in the eye aside, the movement toward open, standardized voting transactions is a welcome one -- especially as the trend toward electronic-based voting systems appears virtually irreversible.
And to hear the standard's authors tell it, you'd think the e-voting train was fueled by your interest in sharing photos of datacenters on Flickr and bidding up Atari 2600s on eBay, rather than the government or technology vendors:
"Times are changing. Society is becoming more and more web oriented and citizens, used to the high degree of flexibility in the services provided by the private sector and in the Internet in particular, are now beginning to set demanding standards for the delivery of services by governments using modern electronic delivery methods," the document states.
Although it does admit that gadgets alone won't cure election no-showism, OASIS lends a little tech evangelism to its undertaking, syllogizing, "The implementation of electronic voting would allow increased access to the voting process for millions of potential voters. Higher levels of voter participation will lend greater legitimacy to the electoral process and should help to reverse the trend towards voter apathy that is fast becoming a feature of many democracies."
Not exactly an argument that boils down to, The more it looks like a widget, the more likely folks are to press on it, but certainly one that assumes "electronic" invokes less voter skepticism.
True, the adoption of open e-voting standards will mitigate some doubters' qualms, but is defining the XML schema for voting data transactions assurance enough?
Posted by Jason Snyder on January 25, 2008 02:20 PM
January 16, 2008 | Comments: (0)
Analysts: OOXML to TKO ODF in late rounds
Position is everything when defending market share, and it just might be that Microsoft, both market-wise and technology-wise, has what it takes to ultimately defend its productivity app dominance from those backing the ODF document standard, according to a recent research report from the Burton Group.
The report, written by analysts Peter O'Kelly and Guy Creese, puts the power of XML -- and the need for enterprises to exploit it – firmly in the decision-maker's seat in terms of the long-term outcome of the heated file format battle between Microsoft's OOXML and ODF, the document standard supported by IBM, Novell, and Sun, among many others.
Likening the document standards skirmish to a James Bond plot rife with "multibillion dollar business empires, global political intrigue, and even some conspiracy theories at the intersection of capitalism, communism, and democracy," O'Kelly and Creese note that slower-to-move enterprises yolked to legacy productivity app content compatibility needs will prove instrumental in bringing ODF ultimately to its knees.
Not exactly new bad-boy Daniel Craig Bond fare. More like Roger Moore on codeine.
Many enterprises "just want to use what works for their needs," O'Kelly and Creese write. "So, by migrating to Office 2007, many companies will let Microsoft make the [file format] decision for them."
In some ways, O'Kelly and Creese's analysis hinges on this inevitability, implying that the ODF camp might be better off lying down in the face of Microsoft's will and market dominance and instead tap into OOXML's openness to create other "productivity ecosystem" opportunities. Many, however, question Microsoft's commitment to keeping the standard "open." Burton's analysts err on the side of taking Microsoft at its word, depicting Microsoft's go-to-alone OOXML standards stance with regard to openness as well-intentioned.
"The debate and scrutiny are not surprising, given Microsoft's historical track record as an extremely aggressive competitor and convicted monopolist, but it's important to understand that Microsoft appears to be sincerely committed to making OOXML a substantive standard," O'Kelly and Creese write.
Enterprise traction aside, O'Kelly and Creese suggest that XML's power in assembling documents from disparate data sources, leveraging reuse opportunities, and facilitating querying will ultimately bring the ODF vs. OOXML battle to heel to W3C standards developments, to which both are already dependent. This shift, the analysts argue, is not simply because of the swift, successful, apolitical advancements of the W3C in comparison to other standards bodies, but part of a larger trend away from file-based content to hypertext models.
And that tips a significant chunk of long-term betting money toward productivity solutions with a SaaS twist, according to the analysts. Incorporating collaboration and communication technologies, the Web-centric productivity model is beginning to gain notable traction. Paying mind to the W3C will prove vital in accounting for the burgeoning tide of wiki- and blog-based content rising at many enterprises.
"In some respects, the web-centric approach represents something of a Copernican revolution for productivity applications," O'Kelly and Creese write. "While the traditional model has productivity applications and related files at its core, the web-centric approach is centered on collections of webpages, and the pages may contain components for document, spreadsheet, presentation, and other needs."
Good news for vendors such as Adobe, Google, and Zoho already deep in pursuit of a services-based productivity app model. But the analyst firm that last year declared deploying Google Apps a "career-limiting move for enterprise architects" remains reluctant to make a full-on hosted endorsement.
Instead, the analysts advise exploiting OOXML, using ODF by exception rather than default, and getting "out of the (traditional) office more often" by tapping XML forms-based Web-centric solutions, such as blogs and wikis.
A hedged bet, yes. But one still firmly in favor of Microsoft, sure to rankle those who support ODF.
Posted by Jason Snyder on January 16, 2008 01:56 PM
May 22, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Suits Swarm on "Web 3.0" Conference
Tim Berners-Lee has been talking about the _next_ World Wide Web almost since the first World Wide Web, which he's credited with inventing, took off. Indeed, Berners-Lee first articulated his vision for a next generation Web in 1998, when he called for a standards-based system for tying together all the different kinds of information that companies and consumers now wrestle with. "Semantic Web" is the term he came up with to describe what the next version of the Internet will look like. It's not great branding, as Berners-Lee, himself, has admitted, and some folks have just slapped the label "Web 3.0" on the whole endeavor.
Of course, the World Wide Web was a phenomenon that went "viral" (before that term was widely ascribed to technological phenomena) and spread globally in a matter of years. But Berners-Lee has had to struggle mightily for almost a decade to promote his vision of life beyond the WWW, promoting new standards like RDF (resource description framework) and OWL (Web Ontology Language) before most people had a clear notion of how they'd be used.
All that work finally appears to be paying off, if the crowds and buzz at the Semantic Technology Conference are any indication. The conference, which is being held this week in San Jose, may be remembered as a kind of turning point, where years of largely academic discussions of Semantic technology ontologies and standards within the international standards community finally began to produce real applications and attract real interest from large technology vendors, venture capitalists and enterprise IT leaders.
"The tie count is way up this year," Richard Mark Soley, CEO of the Object Management Group told InfoWorld. "The shoe count is up too, I think."
Soley, who spoke on a keynote panel with IT executives from Oracle, NASA and UK-based Semantic technology startup Garlik said that, compared with previous years, discussions at the Semantic Tech conference had become much more practical than theoretical, especially with both open source and commercial development tools for integrating business processes using Semantic technology.
Indeed, a casual stroll of the halls of the San Jose Fairmont Hotel reveals a who's who of major US enterprises -- with representatives from Citigroup, BearingPoint, Boeing, Northrup Grumman checking out sessions on using Semantic technology for content management, securing Semantic technology and how Semantic technology can be used to enhance service oriented architectures.
The folks over on Sand Hill Road appear to have seen the light on this as well. Tom Ilube, CEO of UK-based Garlik, a privacy startup that uses semantic technology to monitor personal data use online, said that two years ago, VCs often were unfamiliar with the Semantic Technology concept and sent him on his way. These days, that's rarely the case.
"I've talked to half a dozen VCs in the last 24 hours," Sorley said. "There's definitely a lot of interest."
The presence of so many large IT vendors also suggests that semantic technology may be absorbed into larger product suites at companies like BEA, Oracle and IBM.
However, "Web 3.0" probably won't find a pure expression in any one application, in the way that the NCSA Mosaic Web browser provided an "ah ha" moment for the original World Wide Web, or Friendster and Wikipedia distilled the concept of "Web 2.0." Instead, Soley thinks that Semantic technology will work its way into existing SOA deployments and enterprise data integration efforts as an enabling technology behind the scenes.
"Semantic technology is an enabling technology. Things like OWL and RDF and UML as the modelling language gives you an infrastructure. But that's just enabling technology. What we need on top are standards about how can I can capture it and reuse it and optimize it. The focus should be on the business strategy not the technology," he said.
Still, this year's show may be remembered as the moment when Semantic technology and the Semantic Web finally put on a tie (and shoes) and got real.
"In two years you are going to see panels of all end users talking about successes that they rolled out. They'll be saying 'We needed semantic integration to plug together two biz processes that hadn't been plugged together before. Sure there was a human part to that, but we got (return on investment) much more rapidly because had better descriptions of business processes."
Posted by Paul Roberts on May 22, 2007 11:08 AM
May 26, 2006 | Comments: (0)
Microsoft is setting its sights on the JPEG imaging standard with its own Windows Media Photo, reports Microsoft Watcher Mary Jo Foley.
Microsoft introduced the spec at WinHEC this week, touting its ability to "allow users to correct, render and print photos in half the size a comparable JPEG requires."
Prima facie improvement aside, too bad Microsoft did not turn its interest to ODF rather than JPEG. So, could this be ready any other way than a new land grab that will lock people into Microsoft's products at some point?
PC World puts the big question mark out there: "For Windows Media Photo to make sense, it needs to be supported by cameras, printers, photo software, browsers, and an array of other devices and applications that create, edit, manage, or simply display photos. Does Microsoft plan to invest immense amounts of energy in convincing a gazillion third parties to implement it? Does it see Windows Media Photo as replacing JPEG, or providing an alternative? (Right now, you'd be nuts to buy a camera which only captured images in WMP; one that provided it as an option might be intriguing.)
Check out the full spec here and let us know what you think. (And, what ever happened to PNG?)
Posted by Mike Barton on May 26, 2006 03:45 PM
May 08, 2006 | Comments: (0)
ODF getting cold shoulder from EC
The OpenDocument Format (ODF) may have gotten the ISO's approval last week, but according to a cNet story the European Commission is reluctant to recommend the file format.
Sources say it's Microsoft's drive to obtain standardization for its OpenXML format that may be deterring the EC from backing ODF.
ODF is supported by many applications but not currently by Microsoft Office. However the OpenDocument Foundation says it will release a plug-in for Office to access and save in ODF.
Last October the IDABC -- an EC body that promotes the use of open document formats in public administrations -- said it would recommend OpenDocument, if approved as an ISO standard. But since then Microsoft has stepped up the promotion of Office Open XML.
IDABC is unlikely to specifically recommend OpenDocument now, according to ZDNet UK sources, as it is concerned that a second ISO document standard will emerge later.
That's the "great" thing about standards isn't it? We have so many to choose from. Tell us who you think will -- or should -- prevail in this battle of document formats.
Posted by Caroline Craig on May 8, 2006 07:31 AM
May 05, 2006 | Comments: (0)
The formal ISO approval of the OpenDocument Format (ODF) standard this week is a big step that has all eyes on Microsoft Office.
Now the OpenDocument Foundation's Gary Edwards says it will release a plug-in for Microsoft Office to access and save in OpenDocument Format (ODF), reports Groklaw.
The plugin is being offered to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in response to the its request for information on any plugin for Office that can "easily open, render, and save to ODF files, and also allow translation of documents between Microsoft's binary (.doc, .xls, .ppt) or XML formats and ODF."
Groklaw wrote that the foundation said it has tested the plug-in and it is ready to go. However, a News.com report says it is not ready yet. I've placed a call with Edwards for when it may be available. (Will updte when I hear back.)
But News.com did report this much: "The ODF Plug-in installs on the file menu as a natural and transparent part of the 'open,' 'save,' and 'save as' sequences. As far as end users and other application add-ons are concerned, ODF Plugin renders ODF documents as if (they) were native to MS Office," according to Edwards.
Groklaw writes: "So, to Microsoft: never mind. You don't need to lift a finger."
Posted by Mike Barton on May 5, 2006 03:34 PM
April 28, 2005 | Comments: (0)
Companies ought to encourage blogging, but having policies on blogging is advisable, according to a presentation at the Software 2005 conference on Wednesday afternoon.
Noting that vendors such as Sun Microsystems and Microsoft have embraced blogging, presenter David Sifry, founder and CEO of Technorati, said employees should not only be able to blog but that they should be autonomous and not subject to PR agency screening.
"We all know corporate speak," Sifry said.
He did acknowledge, though, that some companies may have concerns about violating SEC laws pertaining to public company disclosures. A Delta Airlines employee, for one, was fired for a blog, Sifry noted.
Therefore, a corporate blogging policy may be in order. A basic policy can include:
* A requirement that the blogger use his or her real name.
* A disclaimer that says the blogger does not necessarily speak for the company.
* A confidentiality and privacy statement so that the blogger does not violate any non-disclosure agreements.
* A policy on the use of obscenity, tone, and slander.
* Certification that employees will not violate any copyrights.
* A disclaimer pertaining to corporate risk.
Blogging works well at companies that have a culture of trust rather than a culture of fear, said Sifry. Blogging can serve to evangelize, he said.
Asked about money-making possibilities pertaining to blogs, Sifry was a little short on details. He did say software companies can sell blogging software and there are ad sale and syndication possibilities for blogs.
The use of RSS provides interested blog readers with information as soon as it is ready, Sifry said. "What happens to trade magazine space when you can talk directly to the person that is interested?" Sifry asked.
Well, I suppose if someone wants to, they can download one-sided, vendor press releases or ads, or catch other material off of a vendor's Web site right now. Trade magazines theoretically serve as a disinterested third-party observer presenting the pro's and con's of a technology or issue. It's not likely that a blog from the technology developer would present this kind of perspective. And do people really want to be pummeled with vendor ads formatted as technology blogs?
The future for blogs should prove interesting.
-- By Paul Krill, from the Software 2005 conference in Santa Clara, Calif.
Posted by Caroline Craig on April 28, 2005 06:33 AM
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