Usenet 1994 January/usenetsourcesnewsgroupsinfomagicjanuary1994.iso/sources/std_unix/reports/x3

Text File | 1991-09-06 | 5.3 KB | 241 lines

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.ds Rh ANSI and the X3 Committees
.ds Au John Hill <[e-mail]>
.ds Ed Stephen R. Walli <[e-mail]>
.ds Wd U\s-3SENIX\s0 Standards Watchdog Committee
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.tm Subject: Standards Update, \*(Rh
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\fB\*(Au\fP discusses \s-1ANSI\s0 and the \s-1X3\s0 committee:
.P
Over the past few years
information technology standards have become more important in the industry.
One of the most prevalent areas for standardization is
operating systems and
allied services.
This article discusses the largest formal
standards development organization for information
technology in the \s-1USA\s0,
\s-1X3\s0,
and its relationship to \s-1ANSI\s0.
.P
A brief background is useful in understanding how the \s-1USA\s0
develops standards.
The premier standards
body is the American National Standards Institute
(\s-1ANSI\s0).
Its four main functions that are of
interest here are:
.DL
.LI
membership in the International Standards Organization (\s-1ISO\s0)
and
the International Electrotechnical Commission
(\s-1IEC\s0),
the
worldwide standards bodies,
.LI
accreditation of
organizations to develop voluntary \s-1U.S.\s0 standards,
.LI
publication of \s-1U.S.\s0 national standards,
.LI
oversight of
the standards development process to ensure due process
and fairness.
.LE
.P
That's right,
\s-1ANSI\s0 does not develop
standards;
\s-1ANSI\s0 accredits other organizations to develop
standards.
.P
Standards are developed in one of three ways:
.DL
.LI
by professional and trade organizations
(e.g.
Institute
of Electrical
and
Electronic Engineers,
\s-1IEEE\s0,
an
organization which is involved in more than the development
of standards),
.LI
by accredited committee
(\s-1X3\s0),
.LI
by canvass
(e.g.
Ada Joint Program Office,
\s-1AJPO\s0).
The canvass
method is intended for mature
and
non-controversial
standards processing.
.LE
.P
In a nutshell,
\s-1ANSI\s0 accredits
the standards development procedures of individual groups within
some designated,
but very broad
scope,
and
according to one
of the three ways.
\s-1X3\s0,
while not a part of \s-1ANSI\s0
itself,
is an example of a committee that \s-1ANSI\s0 has
accredited to develop \s-1U.S.\s0 national standards.
.P
\s-1X3\s0 was established in 1961.
Since its inception,
the
Computer
and
Business Equipment Manufacturers Association
(\s-1CBEMA\s0)
has
functioned as the secretariat.
\s-1X3\s0 has about 850 projects,
200 standards,
and some 3000 volunteers.
.P
The purpose of \s-1X3\s0 is voluntary standardization in the areas
of computers,
information processing,
and
peripheral
equipment
and devices.
This scope of activity includes
standardization of subsystems in order to provide for
hardware interoperability
and
software portability.
As a result,
many of the fundamental standards of
the computer industry have been developed by \s-1X3\s0.
.P
The true,
nuts-and-bolts work of \s-1X3\s0 is done by its
subgroups.
There are two types of subgroups, advisory and
technical.
The three advisory committees are collectively
empowered to ensure that the process of standards
development is under control.
These advisory committees are
chartered to
.DL
.LI
advise the secretariat in administrative
activities,
.LI
develop the \s-1X3\s0 strategic plan,
.LI
manage
the technical activities of \s-1X3\s0.
.LE
.P
The forty technical committees of \s-1X3\s0 actually develop the
standards.
There are committees for:
.DL
.LI
media
(both magnetic
and optical),
.LI
operating system services
(database and
graphics),
.LI
programming languages
(Fortran,
C,
\s-1COBOL\s0),
.LI
codes
and character sets,
.LI
vocabulary,
.LI
data communications
(\s-1OSI\s0),
.LI
systems technology
(\s-1SCSI\s0,
security),
.LI
and office systems
(\s-1ODA/ODIF\s0).
.LE
.P
These technical committees
frequently act as the \s-1U.S.\s0 technical advisory groups (\s-1TAG\s0s)
for the
development of worldwide standards.
.P
Worldwide standards are a major area of activity for \s-1X3\s0.
Over the past
ten years,
the \s-1X3\s0 member organizations have expended more
resources for development of the base \s-1OSI\s0 standards than on
any other single functional area of standardization.
These
175 largely anticipatory standards were developed for the
most part in the international arena.
The \s-1US\s0 delegates from the \s-1X3\s0 technical committees actively
worked in \s-1SC21\s0,
the \s-1ISO/IEC\s0 subcommittee responsible for the \s-1OSI\s0 standards,
to ensure that \s-1US\s0 interests were met in the
worldwide standards being developed.
.P
Membership in \s-1X3\s0 is open to anybody affected by its
standards.
Its current members,
of about 41,
include some of
the most notable producers,
users,
and general interest
groups involved in the information technology industry.
Members have to participate in order to remain
in good standing.
.P
All members pay annual service fees to support \s-1X3\s0
activities.
The larger members pay more than the smaller.
An additional fee is charged for participating in the
subgroups.
.P
If you have further questions concerning \s-1X3\s0,
you should
contact the \s-1X3\s0 secretariat
(202-737-8888).
These helpful people can send you several standing
documents which expand upon this discussion.