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An excellent question about which I have wondered and know very little
by way of answering except to pass this on.  Early comments from Sun on
xml noted that they had tried to build a dynamic viewer using Java in a
web browser to create a navigator in a fish-eye view of the type we
associate with DynaText and Panorama.  They could do it but it required
some proprietary exentensions to html of which there were alredy too
many floating around from Netscape and Microsoft.  XML should change
that.   I am assuming that navigators will be built using Java or
ActiveX and that we will have to serve them up to the viewer.  Hopefully
someone will create a freely available app that will execute this
functionality. It seems like a generalizable tool that could apply to
any xml document just as current navigators work with all valid sgml
instances.  Any takers?

I wonder if there has been any discussion of this on the sgml
newsgroups?

Michael

>----------
>From:  George A. Miles[SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
>Sent:  Wednesday, September 10, 1997 10:40 AM
>To:    Multiple recipients of list EAD
>Subject:       Re: Stylesheets and Navigators
>
>Michael:
>
>   Regarding your comments concerning the impact of xml:
>
>      I have seen much discussion about the expectation that xml will
>provide greater
>flexibility and control over document layout and presentation (through a
>greater set
>of tags AND through the implementation of various style sheet conventions).
>I have
>NOT seen much discussion about the extent to which xml will provide the kind
>of
>split screen navigation tools that I, at least, associate as a matter of
>course with
>SGML.  One of the reasons that I have not been especially impressed by frames
>within HTML is that while you can use a frame page to set up a series of
>links, you
>cannot apply the outline expansion/contraction features that seem to be a
>basic
>part of SGML.  What can you tell me (us) about XML and navigation?
>
>George Miles
>Yale Collection of Western Americana
>
>
>At 09:52 AM 9/10/97 -0500, you wrote:
>>        Let me share the following information on style sheets and
>>navigators
>>in response to the numerous recent queries on the subject.  Assuming
>>that most of you wish to use a helper application like Panorama
>>(www.inso.com) or Multidoc Pro (www.citec.fi) with your web browser
>>(Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer), I will focus on
>>those products.  Other delivery methods- DynaText, Open Link, DynaWeb-
>>have their own styles methods.  What I say hereafter about Panorama is
>>based on personal experience; comments on Multidoc Pro are second hand
>>and therefore trust that there will be additions or corrections from
>>those more familiar with this product.
>>
>>        Panorama and Multidoc Pro seem to use the same underlying search
>>engine
>>or at least use the same type of style sheets and navigators.  These
>>particular stylesheets and navigators (S&Ns) are themselves SGML-encoded
>>documents, constructed according to two dtds created by Synex
>>Information AB of  Sweden.  Their dtds maybe found in Panorama Pro in
>>the catalog subdirectory as the files sheet.ent and nav.ent.  Panorama,
>>at least, provides no direct technical documentation, such as a tag
>>library, for these dtds.
>>
>>        As these stylesheets and navigators are simply ASCII SGML files, one
>>could use a basic text editor such as the Windows Notepad to create or
>>edit the S&N files.  More usefully, both Panorama Pro and Multidoc Pro
>>provide an interactive editor for creating on modifying  S&Ns.  You will
>>need to purchase Panorama Pro to create and edit them; the free,
>>unsupported version (Panorama Free) does not include this functionality.
>> (Note: this is not the same as the free demo version of Panorama Pro.
>>There has been considerable confusion on this list over the fact that
>>there are two "free" versions of Panorama- one an unsupported, view-only
>>version and one a limited-time, but apparently fully functioning, demo
>>version.)
>>
>>        The Panorama manual provides adequate detail for using the editor to
>>produce stylesheets.  The directions for the navigator editor lack
>>sufficient detail to be very helpful.   I have found the most useful
>>approach to learning how to use these tools is one of reverse
>>engineering.  Capture an existing stylesheet and then experiment, using
>>the editor to see what happens as you make various changes.  The styles
>>language and editor are actually fairly powerful.  I don't know if the
>>editor in Multidoc Pro is better documented.
>>
>>        Where do I get sample stylesheets?  Easy.  Every time you download
>>an
>>sgml file form someplace such as the LC, Harvard, or Yale sites, you are
>>downloading the stylesheet and navigator as well as the sgml instance,
>>the EAD dtd and all the assorted entity files.  The files can be used
>>interactively at that time and are saved on your hard drive so that you
>>can come back and look at them later.  Your browser will save them the
>>SGML file in a temporary directory, usually in c:\windows\temp.  Check
>>the settings on your browser's configuration setup for the location.
>>Panorama will save the other files, typically in its \tmp directory.
>>Check the Panorama.ini file to confirm the location.  Files will have
>>arbitrary names like 30.ssh, 15.dtd, and 25.ent.  Panorama Pro also
>>includes several sample stylesheets and navigators in its entityrc
>>subdirectory.
>>
>>        To test editing an existing style, just right click on an element in
>>a
>>document you have downloaded as it appears in the right frame of the
>>Panorama Pro viewer.  Select Edit style and the style editor dialog box
>>will appear.  Remember that the style for a particular element may have
>>been set in three ways:  for that element itself in its full context
>>(<archdesc><C01><C02><did><unittitle>); for the element in any context
>>(<unittitle> wherever it appears); or by inheritance from the style of a
>>parent or grandparent or great-grandparent element (the style
>>for<C01><did><unittitle> is inherited from the style for <C01>).  You
>>might try experimenting first with altering font styles, colors, and
>>sizes.  Try inserting text before an element.  Go to Before|Text|Specify
>>and insert \att(label)\t for <did><unittitle>.  It will insert the value
>>of the attribute "label" and a tab (assuming that one has defined a
>>value for this attribute in the document).
>>
>>        With the forthcoming xml specification we will be both free of the
>>helper applications (your browser will be able to handle EAD files
>>directly) and we will have a single styles language for xml.  What that
>>will be has not been formally specified by the W3C group but is
>>scheduled to occur this fall.   Microsoft has just announced that it has
>>made a proposal but that, in accordance with W3C requirements, cannot
>>comment on what it is.  There are at least three suggestions on the
>>table, CCS (the styles language of html), DSSSL-O (which has its origins
>>in the sgml community), and a proposal from Bitstream with which I am
>>otherwise unfamiliar.   Until then we must move forward with the tools
>>we have. Good luck.
>>
>>Michael Fox
>>
>>Michael Fox
>>Head of Processing
>>Division of Library and Archives
>>Minnesota Historical Society
>>Voice:  612-296-1014
>>Fax:      612-296-9961
>>[log in to unmask]
>>
>>
>