Extensible Markup Language (XML) Activity Proposal

Executive Summary

W3C, as the home of XML, carries responsibility for the core family of XML specifications. XML is enormously successful as a markup language for documents and data, and is becoming assumed to be part of systems and products. It is used in a wide variety of domains: text, graphic, protocol, voice, music, math, programming, user interface, and many more. You will find XML technologies today in automobiles, aircraft, mobile 'phones, televisions and video recorders, cameras, printers, portable media players, photocopiers, and in many more places, hidden under the surface. With XML, W3C has provided the world's leading infrastructure for information.

Although ongoing discussions about an XML 2.0 come and go, the primary message W3C hears from its members is that they value stability. As a result, no work in the area of a major new version of XML is planned at this time. As XML, XProc, XQuery and XSLT are used increasingly in servers and for large Web application back-ends, possible new work has been suggested in the areas of high-performance XML and of exploring issues surrounding large-scale XML applications.

Proposal

The XML Activity will continue to work on the Extensible Markup Language and related specifications. Primary work products will be new and revised specifications and notes on relevant topics. Over the two years of this chartered period, the XML Activity will continue current work on XML itself and the closely-related specifications, as well as Efficient XML Interchange, the XML Processing Model, XML Query, XML Query Update, Full Text, XSLT (including Streaming Transformations and also JSON interchange), XML Print and layout and XML Schema. Since the last rechartering, some work was completed; the SML Working Group was closed, and the XML Processing Model (XProc) Working Group published its primary deliverable and is now mainly in maintenance mode, and considering requirements for a new version.

No major new areas of work are introduced in this proposal. The previously-disused XML Plenary Interest Group is no longer chartered. The XML Query and XSLT Working Groups have decided to rationalise their version numbers, and are therefore working on XSLT 3.0, XQuery 3.0, XPath 3.0, XQueryX 3.0 and so forth, rather than the previous confusing mix of 2.1 and 1.1 version numbers.

This Activity Proposal also splits the XSL Working Group into two separate groups, XSLT and XML Print and layout. The XSLT Working Group has for many years operated as if it were two separate groups in most respects, and this change will improve openness and accountability.

Extension of Existing Group Charters

• Efficient XML Interchange Working Group [charter]: continuing to work on, and expecting to complete, EXI; also maintenance and possible future work, including a profile of EXI for low-resource devices;
• XML Query Working Group [charter]: working on XML Query 3.0 and associated specifications, including (jointly with XSLT) XPath 3.0;
• XML Schema Working Group [charter]: finish work on XML Schema 1.1, using the XML Schema Interest Group (in the same charter) for technical discussion;
• XML Core Working Group [charter]: will maintain Core specifications of XML; continuing to update related specifications such as Associating Stylesheets, and occasionally producing notes and guidelines; there may alse be work in the area of MicroXML; the Working Group is not currently chartered to produce a Recommendation in that area, but may either produce a Note or request a charter change in the future.
• XML Processing Model Working Group [charter]: finish work on the default processing model, maintain XProc 1.0, and consider future work;
• XSLT Working Group (formerly XSL) [charter]: will continue work on XSLT 3.0 including Streaming and XPath 3.0 (jointly with the XML Query WG)
• XML Print and layout Working Group (formerly XSL-FO, part of XSL) [charter]: will work on XSL-FO 2.0 and give advice as a centre of expertise in internationalized printing and formatting to CSS and SVG.
• XML Coordination Group [charter] will continue to act as a focal point or coordination and liaison.

Proposed Timeline

It is proposed that the XML Activity last through the end of January 2013. See also the summary of the XML Activity table below for details per Working Group.

Resource Statement

The resources required include:

• commitment by Members to participate in the Working Groups
• chairs for eight Working Groups
• one Coordination Group chair
• Working Group Team contacts for eight Working Groups and one Activity Lead.

The individual Working Group charters indicate the exact amount of Team Contact resources. Approximately 1.25 FTE of Team resources are currently allocated to this Activity, divided among two people. Of these, Michael Sperberg-McQueen is part-time, and was hired specifically for work on XML Schema; Liam Quin, the XML Activty Lead, is full-time.

Two of the Working Groups in this Activity (XProc and EXI) are expected to complete their remaining documents during this chartered period, and will then go into maintenance mode, using fewer resources.

Summary of Proposed Activity Structure