SGML Report: Section 2: Software Products
There are approximately forty products described and assessed in
this section of the report many more if one was to include the
`associated products' that are not directly described. Some very
clearly can be fitted into a specialist category, others are
designed to fit across any sort of categorisation scheme.
However, to be able to compare systems at all, the authors felt
that there was a need to try and categorise products by what they
set out to do. The categories chosen for products are:
- Autotaggers
- primarily used for the conversion of
legacy data, much of which will be held in paper form only.
[Note: Products which aim to convert scanned material
properly are noted.]
- Authoring and editing tools
- this category has been
further sub-divided into SGML-specific editing systems and
SGML-aware additions to existing w.p and d.t.p systems.
SGML-specific systems will always process the SGML better,
but users may not feel able to make the single `giant leap'
so they step first into SGML through add-ons to a system they
are already familiar with.
- Transformation tools
- to be able to transform from
one structure or format into another. These tools have a
use beyond SGML as many provide a generalised
transformation capability [Note: One of the packages
assessed uses SGML as the intermediate structuring form
between the input and output forms.] Autotaggers and
transformation tools are closely related.
- Document Management Systems
- the largest group of
products which has been further sub-divided into those
providing a dynamic storage model (like a document database
and authoring environment with built-in document change
control mechanisms); those designed as stand-alone static
storage systems designed to give access very quickly to
information in huge document stores; and combined static-
storage and viewing systems (moving towards the electronic
library). Clearly, there could be overlap, and users are
recommended to look at all systems.
- Stand-alone browsers and viewers
- although part of
managing documents, the products in this group aim to
provide a high-quality, well-formatted view of documents
rather than manage a collection of them.
- Parsers
- all SGML products must be able to parse the
information structures that they use (and so will contain
at least a restricted parser). However, there is still a
role for independent parsers for users who wish to develop
their own total SGML application.
- DTD viewers
- now that graphical user interfaces are
universally available and DTDs are getting more complex, a
group of products are starting to emerge that allow users
to view their DTDs graphically and some provide associated
DTD editing facilities.
- Miscellaneous SGML tools
- the final catch-all
category. This contains descriptions of SGML Conformance
Test Suites that are available, and on the
MarkMinder/HyMinder engine that is available for the
development of HyTime-based hypermedia applications.
Within the description of each product, information is provided
as to which hardware/software platforms they are available on.
This is fairly straight-forward for systems running on PCs (two
divisions: MS-DOS or Windows 3.1) and Apple Macintoshes, but
Unix-based systems may require a particular hardware platform and
would only be available for that version of Unix (or X-gui).
Every effort has been made to obtain a definitive statement from
suppliers, but in the end it has to be the users who confirm that
the particular set of products they choose will run together, and
provide the facilities that they require.