*************************************************************** ****************** WELCOME TO SGML NEWSWIRE ******************* *************************************************************** * * * To subscribe, send mail to sgmlinfo@avalanche.com * * * * (Please pass along to interested colleagues) * * * *************************************************************** BILL GATES ON SGML ================== At the Seybold San Francisco show in October, Microsoft's Bill Gates presented "Publishing in the 21st Century," during which he was approached on whether Microsoft has plans to support SGML in Windows applications. This was his response: "[SGML] is an application-level standard, and the application we have that would most directly relate to this is Word. Word of course uses styles, and we're moving forward to make those styles be hierarchical in nature. Today we do have a filter that allows you to go from various SGML approaches into Word documents, back and forth. There's a great converter that we've worked with a third-party to make available. So a lot of people who create SGML documents use Word as a front-end. As we move up to have hierarchical styles, then you'll have a direct one-to-one mapping between the tags and the styles that we use and we think that that will accommodate SGML in a strong way." [Note from the list manager: There are currently no SGML products available from Microsoft.] Excerpts taken from an audio cassette recording of Bill Gates' speech at Seybold. For more information contact: Audio Archives International 3013 Foothill Blvd. Suite 2 La Crescente CA 91214 (818) 957-0874 (818) 957-0876 (fax) WESSELS, ARNOLD & HENDERSON =========================== The 4 November issue of Wessels, Arnold & Henderson's Research Notes features a brief study on Adobe Systems' Acrobat: "At the Seybold conference several of [Adobe's] customers and partners made presentations regarding electronic distribution of the documents. After observing these presentations and the reaction of potential customers, we believe this will be an evolutionary market, not a revolutionary one. A greater infrastucture or enabling technology is required before electronic distribution of documents becomes a reality. This includes... new ways to represent information electronically versus paper. Most of the experienced users in the electronic documentation segment strongly believe that document information will not simply be displayed on screen and distributed in electronic paper form, but rather utilize the uniqueness of the computer to more rapidly present information and have the end-user assimilate it. We believe creating documents in an adaptable format, such as SGML, that can be assimilated in end-user formats, will be important to early adopters of electronic information.... Today the principal driver to electroncic distribution is the cost savings; in the future, we believe it will also have to encompass information flows that are not well portrayed on paper.... For more information on the Research Notes contact: Wessels, Arnold, & Henderson (an investment banking firm) 901 Marquette Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55402 (612) 373-6100 Report identification numbers: DJIA: 3662 S&P 400: 534 ************************************************************** * SGML NEWSWIRE LIST MANAGER * * * * Linda Turner * * Corporate Communications * * Avalanche * * 947 Walnut Street * * Boulder, CO 80302 * * sgmlinfo@avalanche.com * * linda@avalanche.com * * Vox: (303) 449-5032 * * Fax: (303) 449-3246 * **************************************************************