• The XML Working Group has been chartered by the CIO Council to undertake four activities:
   
  • Identify pertinent standards and best practices
  • Seek partnerships with key industry and public interest groups
  • Seek partnerships with existing communities of interest within the Federal Government
  • Conduct results-oriented education and outreach
     
• People are not a bad place to start every IT application
   
  • Any IT system in which you are required to duplicate your personal ID is a stovepipe
  • Stovepipe systems are to be avoided
  • By definition, such systems are not "customer-focused"
  • LDAP is a widely adopted means of providing interoperability
  • The White Pages Directory is LDAP compliant <http://www.directory.gov/>
  • Should the HR-DN be tightly integrated with the White Pages and vice versa?
  • Can the White Pages automatically be populated by data supplied in personnel forms?
  • Digital signatures should be incorporated into the process, which is reciprocal:
    • Digital certificates for digital signatures should be accessible in the White Pages
    • Digital signatures on the required form(s) should trigger White Pages additions/corrections
       
• eXtensible Markup Language (XML) is fast becoming the lingua franca for electronic records
   
  • What is XML?
    • Charles Goldfarb's "non-geeky" introduction to XML <http://www.xml.org/whitepapers/goldfarb.htm>
    • Marion Royal's presentation <http://xml.gov/marion_royal_intro_to_xml/index.htm>
      • XML fragment <http://xml.gov/marion_royal_intro_to_xml/sld013.htm>
    • Authoring/editing tools
      • W3C's authoring tools guidelines <http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-AUTOOLS/>
      • xml.com's list <http://www.xml.com/pub/rg/XML_Editors>
      • XMLSoftware's list <http://www.xmlsoftware.com/editors/>
      • i4i presentation <http://xml.gov/xmlwg3/index.htm>
        • Tagless editing slide <http://xml.gov/xmlwg3/sld016.htm>
  • The W3C's Xforms Working Group is specifying "the next generation of Web forms" <http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/Forms/>
  • Compliance with standards for "registration" of data elements, DTDs, and schemas means:
    • Needless redundancies and inconsistencies can be discovered and avoided
    • Vendors can readily incorporate the required elements into their COTS products
    • Registry links <http://xml.gov/registries.htm>
  • Rendition of E-records in well-formed XML addresses twin accessibility problems:
    • Immediately by disabled persons (Section 508) <http://www.section508.gov/>
    • Over the long-term as technology evolves and changes <http://www.nara.gov/era/>
  • Myriad XML lexicons (vocabularies) are being developed by specialized interest groups
    • XML.org catalog <http://xml.org/xmlorg_registry/index.shtml>
    • Human Resources XML (HR-XML) <http://www.hr-xml.org/channels/home.htm>
       
• XML registries/repositories:
   
  • OASIS <http://xml.org/registry/index.shtml>
  • Microsoft <http://www.biztalk.org/Library/library.asp>
  • Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) <http://diides.ncr.disa.mil/xmlreg/index.cfm>
    • April 18 briefing for XML WG <http://xml.gov/agenda_20010418.htm>
  • XML.gov? <http://xml.gov/registries.htm>
    • OMB Circualars A-76 & A-119
    • Standard & Optional Forms
      • LMI study
      • GSA efforts
      • HR forms?
    • Information collection burden-reduction process (public-use forms, PRA & GPEA)?
       
• HR-DN/XML WG partnership?
   
  • HR community of interest?
  • Leadership volunteer(s)?
  • Next steps in partnership with EIEITC? <http://cio.gov/docs/interoperability.html#interoperability>
    • XML WG <http://xml.gov/>
    • Architecture WG <http://www.itpolicy.gsa.gov/mke/archplus/group.htm>
    • Knowledge Management WG <http://km.gov/>
    • PKI Steering Committee <http://www.cio.gov/fpkisc/>
    • Governmentwide Directory WG <http://info.usitc.gov/metadire.nsf>

Certified 508 Compliant 04/06/01