X/Open Seeks New Mountaintops in the Internet Age
Web standards and desktop integration are hot, company says
X/Open Co., on the heels of its central role in Unix unification,
is on the way to redefining itself for the next technological
era. Eager not to become road kill on the information highway,
X/Open is looking to take up standard-setting in that sector
as well as in the areas of desktop integration, general open
systems architecture, interoperability, security, and system
and network management.
X/Open, an open systems standards and specifications organization
with headquarters in Reading, UK, is already the custodian of
the Unix brand as well as the Unix Common Desktop Environment
(CDE) specifications. While continuing with those programs, X/Open
staff members have outlined their newest plans in briefings to
analysts and writers.
Hoping to influence the building of the information highway,
X/Open plans to establish relationships with other groups such
as the World-Wide Web Consortium, the Internet Society, and CommerceNet.
"Many of the technology decisions that will define the Information
Highway are being taken now," said Mike Lambert, X/Open vice
president and chief technical officer. "We know that it's coming
now and we can't wait [to get involved] for another five years."
Most existing X/Open technical activities are relevant to the
Information highway but require focus and cooperation between
X/Open and those other groups, he said.
In particular, barriers to interoperability may occur in the
areas of security, national and international integration, quality
of service, cost of installation, and cost of access, Lambert
noted. While eyeing the standards initiatives of other groups,
X/Open is proposing to:
- Establish application programming interfaces (APIs) for
transmission of information through applications across the World-Wide
Web.
- Plan an approach to Web security, working with CommerceNet
in identifying what can be done.
- Address competing de facto Web standards such as Hypertext
Markup Language (HTML) and define and brand a "minimum browser."
- Investigate agent technology such as Sun's Java, which allows
working pieces of code to be imported into a Web browser. Such
agents are "crying out to be implemented in a consistent manner,"
Lambert said.
X/Open's vision of the Information highway is that corporate
users will comprise the first wave of routine users, with significant
penetration in the developed world by the year 2000. Domestic
users will form the second wave, with ubiquitous use by 2010,
dependent on geographical issues and legislation. As for the
Web, its explosive growth shows it to be a major source of innovation,
Lambert said. But he added, "It's not there yet. It's not the
information superhighway but it's going to be where we start
from. I don't think there's any doubt about that."
Desktop Integration
In the desktop arena, Lambert said the organization is going
to concentrate on defining an environment in which volume desktop
systems can interoperate-despite the presence of Microsoft. "We
are changing the focus quite dramatically to desktop integration,"
Lambert said, feeling that it's best to work with Microsoft in
helping integrate Windows with other volume platforms, since
it's obvious that Windows will not be open for re-implementation
to any open standard. He believes Microsoft will cooperate because
otherwise, it stands to lose standing with the user community.
"The majority of the user community now sees Microsoft as a force
for good, not a force for evil," Lambert said. "But if Microsoft
didn't cooperate in this space, they might well turn into a force
for evil. They would like to tie us all up in knots, but they
recognize that cooperation to this degree is the price of remaining
in a dominant position."
X/Open's vision is that all desktop systems will provide access
to information without the constraints of incompatibility. Toward
that end, it hopes to help integrate not only the various desktop
devices but also the various mobile units such as laptops, hand-held
devices, and telephones. X/Open also plans to make the first-level
client/server interface behind the desktop fully open, Lambert
said.
Security
Security needs to be standardized because security solutions
need open markets in order to be cost-effective, said John Spencer,
manager of programs and quality. Existing standards are inadequate
for commercial use, he said. In addition, a security standard
would carry the regular benefits of open systems-vendor independence,
portability, interoperability, and scalability. Spencer added,
"Security standards get more important as the information highway
goes into place." X/Open hopes to introduce a security branding
scheme by sometime next year. "It will be a standard implementation
that the average user can understand" and allow for low production
cost and a short lead time to market, Spencer said.
Architectural Framework
X/Open is hoping to develop a unifying architectural framework
that will encompass all its activities, Lambert reported. More
abstract and generic than a computer architecture, the framework
would include such attributes as a common vocabulary, conceptual
building blocks, structural information, and encapsulation of
other domains. The framework would be relevant to the market
and define the current position and future strategies for open
systems.
X/Open is using a Department of Defense standard as a starting
point: the Technical Architecture Framework for Information Management
(TAFIM), which was developed to address similar problems and
is available to X/Open without constraint. In addition, DOD supports
a cooperative project with X/Open, Lambert said.
Interoperability
X/Open hopes to achieve greater interoperability, both between
applications and from applications to remote servers, Lambert
said. Specifications are needed for APIs, protocols, and data
structures and the cooperation of multiple vendors is required,
he noted.
Unix Branding
While emphasizing its future plans, X/Open also announced that
Unix brands have been issued to 12 companies since the program
began in March, all to the Unix 93 specification. A Unix 95
designation is also available and all vendors with Unix 93
attibutions have guaranteed to move their products to Unix 95, which
means they will conform to X/Open's single Unix specification. Unix
95 will be in effect until at least 1997, after which any
change would be dictated by the market, said Andrew Walker,
director of strategic liaisons. "The most important thing for
X/Open to do is to promote the Unix brand in the marketplace,
Andrew said."