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Re: SGML-- What is it and how can we use it
Erik Naggum
07 Feb 1995 11:02:46 UT
Naggum Software; +47 2295 0313
Posted to: comp.text.sgml
References: 1
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[Daniel E. Cogswell]
| I need to know exactly what SGML is. Is it a "standard" or is it
| something else. Where can I get the "textbook" on it?
SGML is a standard, in the formal sense -- hammered out and agreed upon by
an international community working under the auspices of the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO). its formal, full name is ISO 8879
Information processing -- Text and office systems -- Standard Generalized
Markup Language (SGML), first edition published 1986-10-15, first amendment
published 1988-07-01. it's available from your friendly standards office
(who will demand tons of money for it).
to describe exactly what SGML is is very difficult. it's a language that
can be used to build the infrastructure for interchange of and longevity
for information. by way of analogy, one could describe it as "SGML and the
Art of Information Maintenance -- An Inquiry into the Value of Information"
(with apologies to Robert Pirsig). that is, a way of life once you have
realized that the information we create take on a life of its own and it
can die if we don't care for and feed it properly. in ancient times, you
had to burn down a major library to destroy information, but you got to be
remembered for it. today, you need only upgrade to the latest version of a
particular software product, change a printer, use patented software in the
compression of the data, etc, to destroy many orders of magnitude more
information, but the history books have yet to notice that the previous
generation was the last to leave permanent traces of its tools.
SGML is still mostly viewed as a format used in publishing printed
documents and multimedia CD-ROMS and such. publishing was the original
purpose of the standard, but it was soon apparent that it had far greater
potential (sometimes referred to as "Sounds Great, Maybe Later"). outside
of the publishing industry, understood suitably widely, SGML is thus
regarded as a possible means to save the information that mankind generates
and stores in perishable, proprietary, un(der)documented formats. e.g.,
during the time it takes to write and produce a dictionary, the computer
industry will go through at least two major revolutions. in an industry
where "three seconds is a long time", the things it helps build: oil rigs,
cities, laws, "cultural heritage", standards, all have lifespans of several
billion seconds. (trivia: 3 billion seconds is a little over 95 years.)
however, in the current trend that has lasted for a couple hundred million
seconds, the only things that matter are products, "compatibility", and
using computers to mimic paper and display media. this trend will pass.
then where will we be? scared people will stick to their old data and
realize that those annoying visionaries in the 80's and 90's were right.
lots of people are perfectly happy to do he same work over again, work that
others have done before them and yet others will do after them, even when
there are no external demands on the material to require this. vast hordes
of managers are perfectly happy to waste as many dollars as they waste
seconds with this scheme. whole nations are built by employing such people
to push papers around. clearly, one standard can't stop such waste. but
it can make life easier for those who refuse to subscribe to this wanton
abuse of resources.
SGML is an idea, a philosophy, a language to express grand visions for both
present and future. if it is any good, it will of necessity be used by
those who have much more limited visions. like the literary quality of
pocketbooks, cartoons and MTV, HTML fills this role. like the readers of
pocketbooks and cartoons, most HTML fans scorn its heritage. some do see
the connection, and continue to care about the grander schemes, though.
unfortunately, there aren't any really good "textbooks" on SGML. you won't
read about any grand schemes, any infrastructure or systems building, any
issues of the longevity of information. you can read about the details of
the language in Charles F. Goldfarb: The SGML Handbook; Oxford University
Press, 1990. ISBN 0-19-853737-9. you can read various accounts of some
aspects of its use in other books with "practical" and "guide" in their
titles, the younger the better. if you look for a textbook on SGML
suitable for university level computer science, I hope to get it out late
this year or early next. I believe SGML will become irrelevant unless its
core concepts are well understood and supported by programmers and computer
scientists at all levels. the lack of tools, books, and even interest in
academia (where the C, Unix, the Internet, WWW, etc, started), is a death
knell ringing for SGML. I intend to reverse that. this means a change of
focus away from publishing and information products to information sources,
which is where I think SGML has always belonged.
somebody else can cover the practical issues. thanks for listening.
#
--
miracle of miracles. look what the Net dragged in.
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