[6] in Information Retrieval
[tjm@eagle.mit.edu (Tim McGovern): CWISP-Z39.50 Integration]
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jon Rochlis)
Wed Jun 26 13:46:54 1991
From: jon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jon Rochlis)
To: ir@ATHENA.MIT.EDU
Date: Wed, 26 Jun 91 13:44:39 EDT
------- Forwarded Message
Date: Tue, 18 Jun 91 12:38:40
From: tjm@eagle.mit.edu (Tim McGovern)
To: dcnsm@MIT.EDU, dcns-apps@MIT.EDU
Subject: CWISP-Z39.50 Integration
This is the result of a recent discussion (to which I was a party)
between CWISP folks and a number of Z39 folks. Now that we have an
agreement in principle, there's much more to done to work on actual
specifics.
Tim
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Date: Mon, 17 Jun 91 10:12:27 PDT
Reply-To: "Z39.50 Implementors Workshop" <Z3950IW%NERVM.BITNET@mitvma.mit.edu>
Sender: "Z39.50 Implementors Workshop" <Z3950IW%NERVM.BITNET@mitvma.mit.edu>
From: Margaret Baker <margaret%GARNET.BERKELEY.EDU@mitvma.mit.edu>
Subject: CWISP-Z39.50 Integration
X-To: cwis-l%wuvmd.BITNET@lilac.berkeley.edu,
z3950iw%nervm.BITNET@lilac.berkeley.edu
To: Multiple recipients of list Z3950IW <Z3950IW@NERVM.MIT.EDU>
COALITION INITIATIVE LEADS TO CWISP AND Z39.50 INTEGRATION
An ad hoc study group on the Campus-wide Information Systems Pro-
tocol (CWISP) agreed last month to combine the functions of two
client-server information retrieval protocols. The group was
convened by the Architecture and Standards working group of the
Coalition for Networked Information (CNI). Members of the group
are:
Margaret Baker, University of California at Berkeley
Eric Ferrin, Pennsylvania State University
Martyne Hallgren, Cornell University
Clifford Lynch, University of California Office of the President
Tim McGovern, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cecilia Preston, University of California at Berkeley
Howard Strauss, Princeton University
Dan Updegrove, University of Pennsylvania
Steve Worona, Cornell University
The group agreed that the CWISP implementors will work in tandem
with the Z39.50 Implementors' Group to enrich the functionality
of both efforts by integrating them into one protocol. CWISP re-
quires the exchange of data structures in a Menu and a Document
Description Language (MDL and DDL) which, while not supported as
objects defined and registered for use with the Z39.50 protocol,
can nonetheless be accomplished in Z39.50 using MDL and DDL as
record transfer syntaxes.
Both CWISP and Z39.50 are designed to enable users to use a local
front end to search and retrieve data from other computers, which
may be remote and/or dissimilar. After discussion between CWISP
and Z39.50 implementors, it seemed that the best interests of
both communities were served by blending their efforts in this
way. The tools and standards necessary for implementation are
being developed cooperatively by a number of implementors.
CWIS refers to generalized online university and college informa-
tion sources of all sorts. CWISP, the Campus-wide Information
Systems Protocol announced at the 1990 EDUCOM meeting, describes
standardized ways to meet some specific needs of Campus-wide In-
formation Systems, in particular the MDL, the DDL, and the roots
of an Application Description Language. CWISP was developed by a
group representing Cornell University, the Massachusetts Insti-
tute of Technology, the University of Pennsylvania, and Princeton
University. No production system has been built in conformance
with the emerging CWISP protocol, although a prototype system ex-
ists at Princeton.
Z39.50 is an American National Standard for general computer-to-
computer information retrieval within the framework of a client-
server model. It was adopted in 1988 by the National Information
Standards Organization, an American National Standards Institute
accredited standards development organization. Although Z39.50
has its roots in the bibliographic community, implementations are
being developed by a number of non-bibliographic projects as
well, including work at the University of California at Berkeley,
Thinking Machines, and Sun. A number of library-oriented imple-
mentations are also underway, by, for example, Penn State, the UC
Office of the President, the Florida Center for Library Automa-
tion, and Data Research Associates. An active Z39.50 Implemen-
tors' Group (ZIG) enhances the efforts of all of the implemen-
tors, bibliographic-based or otherwise.
The Coalition for Networked Information was founded in 1990 by
the Association of Research Libraries, CAUSE, and EDUCOM. The
Coalition's goal is to advance scholarship and intellectual pro-
ductivity through the application of advanced computer networking
and information technology. A major focus of the Coalition's ef-
forts is the promotion of the development of networked informa-
tion resources on the emerging national networks. Over 100
academic institutions, including all of those mentioned above,
are active members of the Coalition; other members include pub-
lishers and information technology vendors.
CNI's working group on Architecture and Standards included in its
recently developed agenda an initiative regarding the analysis of
CWISP functionalities vis a vis those provided by Z39.50. This
analysis, carried out by the ad hoc working group in a meeting in
Washington, D.C. on May 24, led to the conclusions described
above, and will afford increased interoperability between diverse
information sources. CNI also provided resources in support of
this meeting.
Margaret Baker
Chair, CNI Ad Hoc Study Group on CWISP
UC Berkeley
margaret@garnet.berkeley.edu
margaret@ucbgarne.bitnet
(415) 642-5601
************************************************
TO GET MORE INFORMATION
>>Coalition for Networked Information
The general contact for CNI is
Paul Evan Peters
Director, Coalition for Networked Information
Association of Research Libraries
1527 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036
Voice: (202) 232-2466
BITNET: PADLER@UMDC
The Chair of CNI's Architecture and Standards Working Group is
Clifford Lynch
Director, Division of Library Automation
UC Office of the President
300 Lakeside Drive, 8th Floor
Oakland, California 94612-3550
Voice (415) 987-0522
BITNET: CALUR@UCCMVSA
>>Campus-wide Information Systems
The CWIS LISTSERV carries discussions of many CWIS-related to-
pics, including occasional public discussions of CWISP. Requests
to join the LISTSERV should be sent to LISTSERV@WUVMD.BITNET.
The letter should just be one line:
SUB CWIS-L your name.
>>Campus-wide Information Systems Protocol
The contact for general CWISP activities is
Howard Strauss
Manager of Advanced Applications, Princeton University
Princeton, New Jersey
Voice: (609) 258-6045
BITNET: D8897@PUCC INTERNET: HOWARD@PUCC.PRINCETON.EDU
Descriptions of the Menu and Document Description Languages are
included in the draft of the CWISP protocol, available through
anonymous FTP from princeton.edu in the directory pubs/cwisp.
Howard Strauss is currently reworking this document to separate
the descriptions of the MDL and DDL structures from those of the
transport mechanisms, then to translate the latter into Z39.50-
compliant descriptions.
>>Z39.50
The contact for Z39.50 is the Chair of the Implementors' Group,
Mark Hinnebusch
Assistant Director, Florida Center for Library Automation
Suite 320, 2002 N.W. 13th Street, Gainesville, FL 32609
Voice: (904) 392-9020 FAX: (904) 392-9185
BITNET: FCLMTH@NERVM INTERNET: FCLMTH@NERVM.NERDC.UFL.EDU
Requests to join the Z39.50 LISTSERV should be sent to
LISTSERV@NERVM.BITNET. The letter should just be one line:
SUB Z3950IW your name.
Many ZIG documents are available by anonymous FTP from think.com
in the directory z3950.
Z39.50 is currently undergoing revision to bring it into confor-
mance with the ISO equivalent, ISO 10162/10163. The revision
will not be available for purchase from NISO until after it has
been balloted by NISO members. The content of the protocol mes-
sages is not significantly different from the first version,
available from Transaction Publishers, but a better reference at
present would be to the ISO versions available from OMNICOM in
Vienna, Virginia, telephone 800-666-4266.
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