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Net Prophet - by Dylan Tweney

December 22 / December 29, 1997

Two great standards that go great together: XML and EDI


For nearly two decades, businesses have been conducting electronic transactions over private data networks, using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) standards. These standards specify the types of documents and transactions that can be exchanged electronically between businesses, and they specify the exact contents and structure of those documents.

Because EDI is an established standard (in other words: it works, and lots of companies use it) and because many companies have plowed significant investments into developing EDI solutions, it's going to be around for awhile. Internet commerce isn't going to replace EDI -- it's most likely going to give rise to hybrid Internet-EDI solutions.

One such hybrid solution is being proposed by the XML/EDI Group, which proposes to extend EDI's functionality by connecting it on the Internet with the emerging Extensible Markup Language (XML) standard.

Legacy limitations

The problem with EDI is that there are a limited (albeit large) number of predetermined EDI documents supported by EDI standards. While these documents can account for a large number of transactions that corporations conduct -- such as shipping invoices, health care claim status reports, and the like -- companies using EDI are limited to the set of EDI documents for which standards already exist.

In other words, if you and your trading partners need to conduct transactions whose parameters aren't covered by an EDI document standard, you're out of luck.

Enter XML, the Extensible Markup Language. A derivative of HTML's parent, the Structured Generalized Markup Language (SGML), XML is midway between SGML and HTML in complexity. XML adds to HTML the ability to create your own markup tags, and to specify how those markup tags should be handled by the XML-parsing browser. Also, you can use XML to structure your documents in a way that can be interpreted by the XML reader software.

For instance, you could use XML to define section headings, paragraphs, and footnotes within your document -- and an XML-capable browser reading that document could appropriately format these elements, and automatically construct a table of contents based on them.

Or, you could create a purchase order in XML, defining and using <ITEM>, <QUANTITY>, and <PRICE> tags to indicate what you wanted to buy. Then, when you sent that document to your supplier, their software could automatically extract these tagged elements -- and feed them into their order entry system for automatic processing.

Something old, something new

I exchanged email with XML/EDI Group member Bruce Peat, who helped me to understand the group's aims.

The XML/EDI Group is working to marry the EDI and XML standards to create a new document interchange language that transcends the limitations of EDI through the use of XML, while maintaining backward compatibility with "vanilla" EDI documents. It will also extend the usefulness of EDI, since XML/EDI will enable EDI documents to be read by any XML-capable browser, as well as by dedicated XML/EDI applications.

With the addition of XML, EDI documents will not only be able to carry data about transactions between companies -- but they will also be able to carry routing, workflow, and processing information within themselves. XML/EDI documents will be self-describing, so that new document types can be sent and interpreted without the need to agree ahead of time on a standard document definition. And XML/EDI documents will even be able to include Java or JavaScript code (or links to server-side code) that will enable them to route and process themselves.

The XML/EDI Group, which was formed in July 1997, is still in its infancy, and a lot of work needs to be done before XML/EDI can be implemented and used by corporations. Right now, the group is gathering comments, but they may later present their recommendations to a standards committee, according to Peat. "We look forward to 1998," Peat told me. "It should be a great year for E-business with XML/EDI. I believe the stars are aligned right now for this E-business framework to become successful."

If your company uses EDI, or is considering doing business with trading partners who use EDI, you will definitely want to check out the XML/EDI Group's work. You can find out more details at the XML/EDI Group's Web site, http://www.xmledi.net. For an extensive introduction to XML/EDI possibilities, see http://www.geocities.com/WallStreet/Floor/5815/start.htm (note: this page takes awhile to download, so be patient). There's also a collection of links to relevant materials at CommerceNet's XML/EDI page, at http://www.commerce.net/services/portfolios/edi/xml-edi/.


Dylan Tweney is the editor of InfoWorld's I-Commerce section online and in print.
Write to him at dylan@infoworld.com.


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