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Interchange of text and hypertext between various systems is vital in order to reuse text and hypertext, but the task of generating translators between different representations is often complex and tedious. The Integrated Chameleon Architecture (ICA) is a public domain toolset for generating translators. However, ica can only handle context‐free grammars while the grammar of hypertext is not context‐free. This paper presents an extended ICA (E‐ICA) which is based on ICA with extra pre‐ and post‐processors to handle the context‐sensitive and implicit information of hypertext. A system called SGML‐MUCH has been developed using E‐ICA. The development and use of the SGML‐MUCH system is presented as a case study with converters for the hypertext systems MUCH, Guide, Hyperties, and Toolbook described in detail.

An important development in the processing and formatting of text has been the creation and use of markup languages, especially with the increased interest in electronic publishing and the Internet. An area being given particular attention has been the use of descriptive markup languages, which allow one to describe a text element or document in a way which is independent of its final output and form. One area which deserves greater attention in this regard is the creation of survey questionnaires, and any comprehensive markup language standard should include markups for supporting this application. This paper examines this need, and explains why a markup language approach would properly support the survey application and how it would extend the utility of the markup approach. A set of markups for survey creation are proposed which would serve as extensions to existing markup standards. The advantages and benefits of markup command languages as compared to traditional direct‐manipulation WYSIWYG approaches are also discussed.

During 1994, Pierian Press began experimenting with the integration of the concepts and respective strengths of both Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) and MARC. These experiments were driven by pragmatism and self‐interest. Pierian Press publishes classified, analytical bibliographies—classical knowledge constructs—which the press and its authors would like to make available for loading on local library systems so that they can function as “maps” unto that subset of literature the respective bibliographies encompass.

There is a widespread perception that, in terms of web‐technology, XML is going to be the ‘next big thing’. Given the amount of comment that it has generated, it seems to be on its way to achieving that status. But how much of the praise should be taken at face value, and how much of the hype is credible? In the following article we examine some of the claims made about the importance of XML and consider how far the enthusiasm about it can be justified. Will XML cause a revolution that will change the way that everyone uses the Internet, whether as searchers or data creators? Or is it a tool for certain types of e‐commerce and large‐scale markup, which may not have a significant impact on the majority of web users?

SGML, or Standard Generalised Markup Language, is an international standard (ISO 8879) allowing the logical structure of electronic documents to be represented rigorously and independent of applications. This article does not discuss the actual standard, but rather proposes a strategy libraries can consider when implementing SGML applications on top of existing products, or when embedding these in innovative end‐user services. Experiences of SGML within the VUBIS‐Antwerpen Library Network (Belgium) are discussed VUBIS‐Antwerpen has adopted SGML as a key standard for the exploitation of its bibliographical data (union catalogues, document ordering online contents, current awareness, publishing on the World Wide Web). With the move towards electronic publication and distribution of documents, SGML tends to become a crucial standard for digital libraries. Projects such as TEI, ELSA, DECOMATE and ELVYN now focus on access to and delivery of full‐text electronic documents, using SGML to manipulate, process and transform the document for the purposes of full‐text searching or hypertext navigation.

This paper outlines the evolution of World Wide Web protocols. The paper reviews the original protocols developed for the web, in addressing, transport and data formats. A review of developments of the protocols is given, including developments of web data formats (HTML 4.0, cascading stylesheets and XML), transport (HTTP/1.1 and HTTP/NG) and addressing (URLs). The paper describes how the web initially lacked a metadata architecture and outlines the emergence of a metadata architecture for the web. The paper includes a review of web technologies which have a social impact on our society, including the Web Accessibility Initiative, the Digital Signature Initiative and the Platform for Privacy Preferences Project.

The feasibility of publishing an electronic journal which will be accepted by the scientific community has always been hampered by factors such as a lack of standardisation of data transmission codes, limitations regarding the incorporation of graphics and photographs, as well as the absence of special columns, book reviews, letters to the editor, product reviews and advertisements. Standardised communication protocols such as TCP/IP have brought this dream one step closer to reality. The final step could be an electronic journal published through the World Wide Web (WWW), currently one of the frequently used Internet navigators. Three WWW specifications provide the ideal arena for electronic journal publishing: URL (uniform resource locator), HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol), and HTML (hypertext markup language). These specifications provide a standardised structure for storing, accessing and sending data, including multimedia (even sound and video) files. The possibilities of such a structure for electronic journal publishing are remarkable: full‐text retrieval could not only be by keyword but also by following hypertext links across articles — even to nodes in other computer systems. In this article the possibilities of publishing via the Web will be addressed and some hints for setting up and maintaining a multimedia scholarly journal will be provided.

On the heels of the rapid growth of the World Wide Web have come advances in multimedia document formats and the hardware and software to support them. As a result of this combination of factors, the electronic journal is, at last, economically and aesthetically viable.

The purpose of this paper is to provide information about the extensible markup language (XML) – its history, function, legacy, and contribution to the world wide web and to the discipline of knowledge management. The knowledge worker will better understand how XML supports the codification aspect of the technology pillar of knowledge management.

The author gives an overview of markup languages, which preceded XML, details XML syntax structure, and discusses techniques for processing XML data. Derivative markup languages which use XML's syntactical structure are listed, and an exercise explaining the process behind generating XML documents from spreadsheets is provided.

XML has served as an integral part of the world wide web for over a decade, and enables internet applications to transform and exchange data in a very efficient manner. The codification of knowledge is germane to the KM process, and XML provides a very capable means for warehousing knowledge that can later be retrieved from knowledge repositories and relational databases. Additionally, XML‐like markup languages such as ebXML (electronic business for XML) help improve the effectiveness and efficiency of knowledge organizations.

The paper hightlights how the management and valuation of knowledge assets are greatly facilitated by the functionality offered by XML, which enables a knowledge worker to store and retrieve knowledge artifacts in the form of structured data.

A new vehicle for user instruction in academic libraries could be a hypertext library guide distributed on the World Wide Web. This article considers the advantages of an electronic library guide, and the particular advantages and problems of producing one using HTML (hypertext markup language) on the World Wide Web. Existing library guides on the Web are reviewed, and found to be impressive if capable of improvement. Some of the broad design issues are also reviewed, and the possible content of a guide discussed. Likely future developments are then considered.