IT/01-0486

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Proposal for Project to Develop A Revised Standard

1. Source of the Proposed Project

  1.1 Title

American National Standard Dictionary of Information Technology (ANSDIT).

  1.2 Date Submitted

2001 May 22.

  1.3 Proposer

NCITS Technical Committee K5, Vocabulary.  K5 has 6 voting members.

2. Process Description for the Proposed Project

  2.1 Project Type

R

  2.2 Type of Document

Standard.

  2.3 Definitions of Concepts and Special Terms

Not applicable.  No special concepts or terms are needed in developing or understanding the document (the proposed standard).

  2.4 Expected Relationship with Approved Reference Models, Frameworks, Architectures, etc.

None.

  2.5 Recommended NCITS Development Technical Committee

Existing NCITS Technical Committee K5, Vocabulary.

  2.6 Anticipated Frequency and Duration of Meetings

Six four-day meetings per calendar year.

  2.7 Target Date for Initial Public Review (Milestone 4)

July 2001.
  2.8 Estimated Useful Life of Standard

Two to four years.

3. Business Case for Developing the Proposed Standard
 
  3.1 Description

The recommended scope of the Proposed Standard includes the technical terms and their definitions that are required by persons concerned with major areas of the information technology field, and especially the subject areas that comprise the scope of  NCITS.

The scope of ANSDIT is limited to concepts or terms expected to be employed by computing professionals, skilled managers, or users of information technology, but usually excludes technical detail of concern only to specialists.

The Proposed Standard will not include entries from the definition sections of technical standards where entries do not have significance outside that technical standard.  Neither will it usually include concepts and terms that are: a) from specialized areas of information technology, b) still in development, nor c) of a parochial nature.  Inevitably, the rapid growth of the field of information technology precludes the standard from being exhaustive and final.

  3.2 Existing Practice and the Need for a Standard

Review of existing practice in this area indicates an indiscriminate use of terms to the detriment of effective communication, especially when new terminology evolves as a result of changes in technology.

The communication of facts and ideas depends upon a mutual understanding of  technology.  This is particularly true in the rapidly growing field of information technology, in which there is a continuing need for a comprehensive source of agreed-upon technical terms and definitions.  The intent of the Proposed Standard is to reflect common usage where feasible.

Information technology gives rise to numerous exchanges of both an intellectual and a material nature.  These exchanges often become difficult, either because of the great variety of terms used in various fields to express the same concept, or because of the absence or imprecision of useful concepts.  Users, developers, and suppliers of products and services stand to gain much benefit from a consistent vocabulary as presented in the Proposed Standard.

The importance of terminology standardization is not immediately self-evident and is frequently underestimated.  A common view is that terminology standards aid clarity of documentation.  Although this is a major value, there are other important benefits to producers, consumers, and general interest groups that should be considered.

• Simplification of the User Interface.  For usability and connectivity of systems, there must be a generally agreed-upon set of simple, well-defined terms for user actions that can be employed universally in displays, menus, commands, etc.

• Translation Support.  An accurate, up-to-date, standard dictionary is an essential tool for translators and a key factor in reducing the high cost of translation.  For example, many organizations build standard dictionaries into online query systems to provide national language equivalents for standard terms along with their agreed-upon meanings.

• Contracts and Proposals.  Although the Proposed Standard is not intended for use as a legal document, it provides a basis for mutual understanding of technical terms in contracts, proposals, and other communications among users, producers, vendors, etc.

  3.3 Implementation Impacts of the Proposed Standard

    3.3.1 Development Costs

A rough estimate is that development of the Proposed Standard has consumed 5000 man-hours, including participation at meetings and work between meetings.  Translating this into dollars would be difficult, inasmuch as most members (including alternates, who also participate and are included in the 5000 man-hour estimate) participate on a voluntary basis at no charge.  Some members participate as part of their employment, but they have not formally tracked the actual time spent.  They, too, contribute on their own time as well.

There have been logistical costs of approximately $10,540.  There were no labor costs for technical editors.

    3.3.2 Impact on Existing or Potential Markets

The Proposed Standard will have no direct impact on existing or potential markets in the information technology arena.  The Proposed Standard does not prescribe any aspect involving a product or service.

With the advent of a popularly priced CD-ROM or Web edition of the Proposed Standard, it has potential to have an impact in the popular computer dictionary market.  As it is, the current ANSDIT has been a best-selling ANSI standard.

    3.3.3 Costs and Methods for Conformity Assessment

Conformity assessment is not necessary and therefore will incur no costs.  ANSDIT merely reflects and suggests USA usage.

    3.3.4 Return on Investment

It is difficult to provide a quantitative estimate on the return on investment.  In any event, the return on investment is to the information technology community as a whole, rather than only to the developers and their sponsors.  If the Proposed Standard offers a basis for wording contracts so as to avoid misunderstanding, the cost savings from avoided litigation would obviously be orders of magnitude greater than the cost of producing the Standard.  If the Proposed Standard offers definitions that assist the general user of information technology, significant costs are avoided in wasted and frustrated user time.  This could translate into more sales of  information technology products and services, and would benefit the industry in general.

  3.4 Legal Considerations

    3.4.1 Patent Assertions

It is expected that no patent assertions will be made.  Definitions are not patentable; however, they are copyrightable. As is normal practice, some definitions were derived from existing literature, but every effort has been made to insure that  copyrights were not violated.

    3.4.2 Dissemination of the Standard

The proposer is unaware of any intellectual property rights assertions that would hinder distribution of this Proposed Standard in a manner consistent with the property rights of NCITS, ANSI, or ISO/IEC.

4. Related Standards Activities

  4.1 Existing Standards

This Proposed Standard will be a revision of the existing standard ANSI X3.172-1996 American National Standard Dictionary of Information Technology.

No other standards will affect or be affected by this project.

  4.2 Related Standards Activity

NCITS Technical Committee K5 has actively participated in the discontinued
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 1.  In the development of the Proposed Standard, K5 derived entries from its participation in the development of IS 2382, Information Technology Vocabulary.

  4.3 Recommendations for Coordinating Liaison

There are no NCITS subgroups that should be identified as coordinating liaisons.

  4.4 Recommendations for Close Liaison

Recommendation is for close liaison with all NCITS Technical Committees, through their Vocabulary Representatives.