Arbortext’s XML Authoring Push

Analyst Ron Schmelzer of ZapThink says that, until recently, companies have had no option but to create these kinds of documents by hand. XML authoring expands the possibilities by automating paperwork. “It’s for any document that has some sort of structure.” Putting in XML by hand, while an alternative, is far less efficient; in a document-deluged business environment “no one wants to code more than once.”

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XML in the Content Lifecycle

The process of creating content — information meant for human consumption — is almost always extremely effort-intensive. People must spend time organizing information prior to creation, constructing the content, and laying out the information so that it is easily read. With so much time, cost, and effort invested in content, it makes sense to reduce costs by reusing content as much as possible. Furthermore, content-oriented processes involve a complex set of interactions that progress in a “Content Lifecycle” consisting of five major stages: content creation, management, publishing, syndication, and protection. Each of these phases requires different technologies, processes, and resources.

By rearchitecting content representation technologies to treat content as another asset in the corporate IT infrastructure, businesses can realize the benefits long promised to us by reusable and agile content. But first, we need to move from ad-hoc content creation to content componentization, and then to content services. XML and Web Services are the key to this transition that can help organizations maximize the value of their content.

ZapNote: Corel

In 2001, Corel began an aggressive campaign to add XML to their advanced publishing products line. They realized that XML could take content development and management to a new level. XML lets users create content that they can categorize, search, re-use, and format automatically. No one understood the power of XML better than SoftQuad, which Corel acquired in 2001. SoftQuad had long played an instrumental role in the development of document-centric technologies.

Corel recently shared with ZapThink its strategy for tying together its SoftQuad, Ventura Publisher, and other product lines into a cohesive mix applicable for content developers and publishers alike. The results offer a compelling set of solutions for the corporate enterprise looking to adopt XML as a component of its content development and delivery.

XML in Financial Services

The Financial Services Sector covers a wide range of businesses and industries revolving around the management and exchange of financial instruments. There are a number of factors that contribute to financial service’s role as a leading implementer of XML technologies. The potential opportunities and pitfalls, and current ways in which XML is being used by this industry sector are explored in detail in this report.

ZapNote: HyperVision

Many of the documents of value created within an organization come from those that work directly with customers or end users. These non-technical document authors prefer to use common word processing tools to meet their needs, but they lose many of the features and capabilities that XML can offer organizations. Thus, the challenge is allowing users to create documents that take advantage of XML without requiring them to use a new, unfamiliar tool set. HyperVision has created the WorX suite of products to meet the need of document authors to create XML-enabled documents within the Microsoft Word environment. The system enables Word users to create XML documents by automating text markup and guiding markup decisions, making suggestions based on context.

ZapNote: XML Cities

In order for any of the advantages of XML technology to be applied, XML documents must first themselves be created — either from scratch or converted from "legacy" document formats. The XMLCities’ solution provides automated and "non-intrusive" conversion of paper and legacy documents requiring minimal manual operation.

ZapNote: Altova

While previous versions of Altova’s XML Spy product were focused on serving solely the needs of XML developers, the new version of the product adds a new market — XML content creators and users. The Austrian company hopes to bring XML spy from developer-focused IDE to a comprehensive product line that covers two major markets: developers and non-technical content users.