ISO/IEC JTC 1

Information Technology

ISO/IEC JTC 1 N 4575

DATE: 1997.03.06

REPLACES

DOC TYPE:
Other document

TITLE:
Request for Information from National Bodies and Subcommittee Secretariats concerning Plans for Server-based Document Distribution

SOURCE:
JTC 1 Secretariat

PROJECT:

STATUS:
The JTC 1 Ad Hoc requests the JTC 1 Secretariat to circulate JTC 1 N 4575 requesting information from NBs and SC Secretariats concerning their plans for moving to server based document distribution. This information is to be submitted by May 20, 1997.

ACTION ID: ACT

DUE DATE: 1997.05.20

DISTRIBUTION: P and L Members

MEDIUM: D

DISKETTE NO.: 116

NO. OF PAGES: 3

Secretariat, ISO/IEC JTC 1, American National Standards Institute, 11 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036; Telephone: 1 212 642 4932; Facsimile: 1 212 398 0023; Email: lrajchel@ansi.org

JTC 1 N 4575

1997-02-27

Request for Information from National Bodies and Subcommittee Secretariats concerning Plans for Server-based Document Distribution

Background:

At its 10-13 December 1996 Plenary meeting in Paris, JTC 1 endorsed the timeline for its implementation of Information Technology with a target date of September 1997 for server-based document distribution. The timeline calls for JTC 1 and Subcommittee Secretariats to maintain all current documents on line beginning no later than September 1997. Diskette distribution will be phased out by December 1997. Documents will only be available by other media, e.g., paper on an exception basis.

For additional information, refer to the following documents:

• JTC 1 N 4536 - Free Web and Email Services for JTC 1 SCs and WGs
• JTC 1 N 4571 - JTC 1 Policy on Electronic Document Distribution using the World Wide Web
• JTC 1 N 4572 - JTC 1 Web Server Policy

Server-based Document Distribution Scenario:

For a description of the initial Web-based mode of operation for document distribution, refer to Attachment to this document.

Status Request of National Bodies and SC Secretariats

For planning purposes, the JTC 1 Ad Hoc on the Strategy for Implementation of IT, is requesting answers to the following questions related to their plans for server-based document distribution.

National Bodies are requested to answer Question 1; SC Secretariats are requested to answer Questions 2 and 3.

The Ad Hoc will compile the results and provide them to JTC 1 for an overall status of the implementation.

National Bodies:

1. At the JTC 1 level and for which SCs are you prepared to obtain documents from servers rather than via diskette or paper distribution by September 1997? If not, indicate when (for JTC 1 and SCs) when (month/year) you will be able to do so.

SC Secretariats:

2. Are you prepared now to distribute documents via server? If not, when (month/year) will you be able to do so?

3. Are your members (e.g., NB Contacts, Committee Officers, Category A Liaisons) able to obtain documents via server?

ATTACHMENT

In this document, a number of statements are made and questions posed about the World Wide Web based operation (initial phase) of the ISO/IEC JTC 1 committee and its reporting subcommittees. These statements and questions assume a mode of operation of JTC 1 and its SCs which can be summarized as follows:

a) Distribution of documents from an SC Secretariat* shall be by means of a World Wide Web (WWW) based repository operated either by the SC Secretariat or another responsible body appointed by it.

b) The repository as defined in a) may comprise a mixture of directly viewable web-based files (e.g. those in HTML format), documents viewable through the linking of other viewing capabilities (e.g. PDF files) and files which need to be downloaded before viewing (e.g. revisable-form documents such as Word and WordPerfect documents).

c) The mixture of document availability as described in b) will vary from SC to SC as a reflection of their own requirements and usage, but SCs should bear in mind their collective responsibility to minimize the burden of differing mechanisms placed on National Bodies for verification and further distribution.

d) The provision of input documents (as NB contributions, responses, committee officer documents, etc.) shall continue under existing arrangements (e.g. diskette, e-mail with attachments, etc.). Web-based input mechanisms are permitted where already in place, but will be the subject of further proposals for SCs which do not currently use such a method.

*For the purposes of this description the term SC Secretariat shall mean the JTC 1 Secretariat and the secretariats of all its reporting SCs unless otherwise explicitly approved by JTC 1.