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Explanation Questions This section documents several of the key directional decisions made during the course of this initiative. Questions of the type, "Why did you …", are answered in general, while avoiding deep detail. Details on these decisions are left for actual discussion, since the answers often require interactive dialog. This section should be considered semi-technical. Q. What types of transactions are included in the FIDX Standards? A. The FIDX Standards include or will include XML-based standards for the following functions:
Q. There are a number of XML standards and specifications. Why create yet another? A. At this time, XML development is very dynamic and there are numerous competing XML initiatives. Some of these overlap and compete while others are entirely independent. A partial list of these efforts includes:
At this time it is not clear how these initiatives will consolidate and which will survive (and of those that survive, what form they will have). At the same time, Home or Office Furnishings Marketplaces are emerging that need to exchange data between buyers and suppliers (and between Marketplaces as well). Waiting for the eventual consolidation of XML-based standards is not an option. The creators of the FIDX Standards chose to adopt the UCC as its starting point (or technical foundation). The UCC is already in production use by dozens of companies across a broad spectrum of industry and has proven that it works. This cannot be said of all the other initiatives. While it is unknown what direction XML will take, it is likely that the UCC will have some role in the eventual XML technology consolidation. While the UCC has features that meet the needs of the Home or Office Furnishings Industry, the specifications for the data exchanged by the UCC transactions do not.
The FIDX Standards used the UCC data specification and code tables as a starting point, but made additions and changes based on the expertise of subject matter experts of the
participating companies. The participants researched other industry initiatives for best practices including all of the above and others, and leveraged their experience in EDI. The
specifications of the FIDX Standards build on current practices for data exchange of the participants while anticipating the capabilities needed in the future.
Telecommunications capabilities have "exploded" and continue to grow. While bandwidth efficiency will always be a constraint of data exchange, the limits of the past have been significantly reduced. The overhead of formatting data using XML is offset by its flexibility and richness for data expression. XML has a very low cost of entry. Products for working with XML are generally very inexpensive or free. This is recognized by EAI (Enterprise Application
Integration) and B2B product vendors alike who have created XML adapters or integrated native XML capabilities into their offerings. As other vendors see the value of XML, we see support
for it in database and messaging technologies. XML is becoming the preferred format for data exchange (and even storage in some cases). Lower entry costs and non-proprietary technologies
with unrestricted access will enable all groups to more easily adopt the XML-based FIDX Standards. Q. Are there other Standards being developed or established for the Home or Office Furnishings Industry (maybe in other industries)? A. While several types of transaction standards have been developed, no XML standards exist for the overall Home or Office Furnishings Industry. In areas where Home or Office Furnishings-related XML-based standards have already been created, our goal is to endorse, incorporate, or converge with these standards to develop the best solution for the industry; however there is a very limited amount of data of this type. Other industries have or are in the process of developing XML-based standards. The FIDX Standards will allow for easy translation between our transactions and
the defined XML transactions of other industries. It is hoped that basing the FIDX Standards on the UCC, will facilitate the translation of data from those initiatives and this
initiative, perhaps even consolidating in some areas. Q. How will other standardization organizations receive this initiative? A. Where touch points are identified between the FIDX Standards and the work of other standards organizations, FIDX intends to work closely with these organizations
to obtain their endorsement and facilitate convergence with the FIDX Standards. A. The FIDX (Furniture Industry Data Exchange) organization is the natural body to represent the needs of the Home or Office Furnishings Industry. OASIS is not a standards organization. It is an organization promoting the use of XML (and SGML) and facilitating its use by hosting XML specifications. It does not in any way coordinate or control the development of XML-based standards. OAG is another. Neither organization is industry specific. Standards nearly always develop first within a company, second within an industry, and finally across industries. The state of XML today is that nearly all
initiatives are intra-company while some cross-industry initiatives are beginning. Q. Is there concern that other groups within the industry will create their own standard and ignore the FIDX Standards? A. Without the support of key industry participants who are committed to a single industry standard, it will be difficult to achieve the critical mass necessary to sustain business. What is being done in other industries is more likely to impact the work of FIDX. Until cross-industry standards are created, open communications will be key to understanding what related industries are doing and ensuring that there is an ability to translate between one industry's XML data and another's. Eventually, there will be convergence (probably not complete convergence). FIDX will need to ensure that the Home or Office Furnishings Industry is communicating with others as this evolves. |