The National Committee for Information Technology Standards (NCITS) is accredited by the American National Standards Committee (ANSI). Its Technical Committee K5 (Vocabulary) is in need of additional members experienced in Information Technology.

The importance of IT terminology standardization is not immediately self-evident and is frequently underestimated. A common view is that terminology standards merely 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 used universally in displays, menus, keytop labels, commands, etc.
• Contract and Proposals. Although a standard dictionary 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 producers, vendors, etc.
• Support for Other NCITS TCs. Through interaction with the Vocabulary Representatives of other NCITS Technical Committees, K5 plans to process and include specific terminology in future editions of the American National Standard Dictionary of Information Technology (ANSDIT), but K5 can accomplish this on a timely basis with additional participating members.
• 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. Many organizations build standard dictionaries into online query systems to support translation operations, e.g., by providing the translator with national language equivalents for standard terms along with their agreed-upon meanings.

ITIC charges a fee of $300 annually for participation in the work of K5. Meetings of K5 are held six times a year in Washington, DC. For information on membership, time, and agenda of next meeting, etc., please contact the Chairman, Helmut E. Thiess, at 1834 Lamont St, NW, Washington, DC 20010-2604; Tel: 202 265-9439; FAX: 202 387-1831; mailto:hthiess@erols.com

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