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ISO Focus The Magazine of the International Organization for Standardization Volume 3, No. 3, March 2006, ISSN 1729-8709 Managing knowledge • Adobe’s commitment to promoting ISO standards • Safety issues for needles Contents 1 Comment Håvard Hjulstad, Chair of ISO/TC 37 Standardizing knowledge ? You are kidding, aren’t you ? 2 World Scene Highlights of events from around the world 3 ISO Scene Highlights of news and developments from ISO members 4 Guest View Shantanu Narayen, President and Chief Operating Officer ISO Focus is published 11 times a year (single issue : July-August). of Adobe It is available in English. 8 Main Focus Annual subscription 158 Swiss Francs Individual copies 16 Swiss Francs ISO © Publisher Managing knowledge Central Secretariat of ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 1, rue de Varembé CH-1211 Genève 20 Switzerland Telephone + 41 22 749 01 11 Fax + 41 22 733 34 30 E-mail [email protected] Web www.iso.org Manager : Anke Varcin Editor : Elizabeth Gasiorowski-Denis • Expanding the ISO e-learning programme Assistant Editor : Antoinette Price • How ISO built one of the world’s leading extranets Artwork : Pascal Krieger and • Standards as databases Pierre Granier • PDF/A – worldwide collaboration to preserve electronic ISO Update : Dominique Chevaux documents Subscription enquiries : Sonia Rosas Friot • The learning curve – how IT shapes learning environments ISO Central Secretariat • Common sense, common logic Telephone + 41 22 749 03 36 Fax + 41 22 749 09 47 • Topic Maps – Supporting both knowledge and information E-mail [email protected] • Protecting business information, knowledge and intellectual capital © ISO, 2006. All rights reserved. • Managing records, managing knowledge The contents of ISO Focus are copyright • The Dublin Core standard – a worldwide electronic and may not, whether in whole or in part, be reproduced, stored in a retrieval information resource for business and learning communities system or transmitted in any form or • How to integrate standardization in knowledge management by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without 41 Developments and Initiatives written permission of the Editor. • ISO at Davos : International Standards ‘ tools for positive The articles in ISO Focus express the views of the author, and do not necessarily reflect globalization and sharing innovation’ the views of ISO or of any of its members. • ISO/PAS 28000 applies management system approach to security of global supply chains ISSN 1729-8709 Printed in Switzerland • Partnerships in the development of International Standards Cover photo : ISO. 49 Coming up ISO Focus March 2006 Comment Standardizing knowledge ? You are kidding, aren’t you ? ot really. What good is knowl- is crucial for success, and that means mechanisms for personal and sensitive edge if it cannot be represented interoperability on all levels: techni- information) regardless of language or Nand communicated? cal, operational and semantic. structure. Knowledge management sys- Knowledge management is “ Knowledge management tems can be used for so much more the sum of knowledge representa- than asking about the weather and the tion and knowledge communication. systems can be used next bus. We will see applications with- Then there is information, which is an for so much more than in e-learning, e-government, e-admin- important component of knowledge. asking about the weather istration – within all e-things. It will Roughly, you could say that informa- add new aspects to computer-assisted tion is data with meaning, and knowl- and the next bus.” translation and technical writing. It edge is information that can be used will also impact on design and engi- and reused. Semantic interoperability is neering. Standardizers have an impor- Knowledge management is as about different systems understand- tant role to play in all this, as we will old as the written word. People have ing each other’s language. A lot of it see throughout this issue of ISO Focus: been storing representations of knowl- is terminology; not just terms and def- Knowledge management is, quite simply, edge in systematic ways in dictionaries initions, but explicit and machine-usa- about everything. and encyclopaedias and libraries. Stor- ble links between concepts. Virtually ing is simple; retrieving and using this all standardization committees deal knowledge may be something entirely with terminology – many of them even different. Enabling computer systems develop it – and all standards are based to utilize stored knowledge adds yet on terminology. But for a knowledge- another level. based system to be as efficient as pos- The building of knowledge- sible, the terminology that is available based computer systems is changing needs to be highly reliable and con- things around us. It is a development sistent. We are seeing the emergence from “press-8-for-a-weather-report-for- of sophisticated ontologies, semantic tomorrow”-type systems to “I want to Webs and Topic Maps. The higher the go somewhere nice and warm for my quality and level of standardization in holidays next week within a budget of these activities, the higher the likeli- EUR 1 000 ”. ness of success. We are seeing fragments of these In addition, the information need- systems in various fields, such as pub- ed for any one particular application lic transport, traffic and weather infor- or query is likely to be found in many Håvard Hjulstad mation. New advanced applications different locations. We certainly do not are constantly being developed. We want to duplicate information, involv- Chair of ISO/TC 37, Terminology are engaging computers to carry out ing duplication of effort, and addition- and other language and content more routine tasks, thereby allowing al sources of inconsistencies. resources us to enjoy more interesting and com- For instance, the sentence, “John plex ones. The issue is not that com- Smith is Managing Director of the ABC puters are “taking our jobs”, but rather Company, which was founded eight that with so much information around, years ago”, can, using the same infor- computers are needed to filter it. mation, be structured as follows: “com- Of the scores of bits and pieces pany: ABC Company; founded: 1998; that make up a complete representa- person: John Smith; function: Manag- tion of knowledge, a large portion is ing Director”. The point of this exam- being standardized, creating almost too ple is to show how, ideally, any software many layers of standards. Interopera- should be able to access any piece of bility between standards and systems information (obviously with protection ISO Focus March 2006 1 World Scene Leading industry groups organizations and industry con- accepted everywhere without The meeting was attended by call for International sortia. They also agreed that the need for further measure- 80 government officials in Standards to shape the similar events designed to allow ments. addition to inter- and non- for the open exchange of ideas govermental organizations. future of the digital home The initial motivation for this should be held in the future, in declaration came at the 22 nd They discussed energy and Household connectivity is view of improving coordination General Conference on Weights tourism and the environment, growing rapidly with more and and avoiding duplication of and Measures in 2003, in which the incorporation of environ- more electronic devices and work. national delegations endorsed mental concerns more firmly networks within the home More on the outcomes of the its resolution. into the UN system, as well as distributing and using digital workshop will be available in the international energy policy, information and media. In addi- This joint declaration is a May 2006 issue of ISO Focus. particularly renewable energy tion, remote control of lighting, reflection of the ongoing close sources and efficiency and the heating, appliance-use and cooperation between ILAC, implementation of a global security systems attached to the Joint declaration to BIPM and OIML and promotes chemicals strategy. home are making the digital the use of the three Mutual recognize measurement ISO technical committee ISO/ home a reality. Given the Recognition Arrangements that standards, calibrations TC 207 for environmental various technologies involved, these organizations operate in and tests management has developed a International Standards that their respective fields : meas- A joint declaration was signed urement standards, legal three-part standard which gives in January 2006 by the direc- metrology and laboratory organizations globally harmon- tors of the International accreditation. ized verifiable requirements for Bureau of Weights and Meas- reducing their greenhouse gas ures (BIPM), the International emissions. Organization for Legal Framework for Metrology (OIML) and the international chemicals World Standards Day secretary of the International management 2006 Laboratory Accreditation At the international confer- ISO, IEC and ITU have Cooperation (ILAC), to facili- ence on chemicals manage- announced “ standardization tate mutual recognition of ment, held in February 2006 and small businesses ” as the measurement standards, cali- in Dubai, United Arab Emir- theme for this year’s World brations and tests. ates, the International Council WSC workshop on digital technologies Standards Day. in the home which was held in Geneva, of Chemical Associations Switzerland, on 2 and 3 February 2006. endorsed the United Nations The theme is designed