News Release: World Wide Web Consortium Issues Scalable Vector Graphics 1.0 as a Recommendation

For more information on SVG, and to speak with members of the W3C
Technical team, please contact: 

	Janet Daly, W3C 
	+1 617 253 5884
	janet@w3.org


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World Wide Web Consortium Issues Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.0 as a
Recommendation

SVG Delivers XML-Based Vector Graphics to the Web

Web Resources
SVG Press release: 
	http://www.w3.org/2001/09/svg1-pressrelease
SVG Testimonials from Adobe Systems, BitFlash Inc., Canon Inc., Corel
Corporation, CSIRO, HP, ILOG, Jasc Software, KDDI, Schema Software, 
Primaci, Savage, Sun Microsystems, and ZoomON: 
http://www.w3.org/2001/09/svg1-testimonial
All About SVG:
	http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/
	

http://www.w3.org/ -- 5 September 2001 -- The World Wide Web Consortium
(W3C) has issued Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) 1.0 as a W3C
Recommendation, representing cross-industry agreement on an XML-based
language that allows authors to create two dimensional vector graphics.
A W3C Recommendation indicates that a specification is stable,
contributes to Web interoperability, and has been reviewed by the W3C
Membership, who favor its widespread adoption.

W3C Meets the Needs of Web Designers with Scalable Vector Graphics

Web designers have requirements for graphics formats which display well
on a range of different devices, screen sizes, and printer resolutions.
They need rich graphical capabilities, good internationalization,
responsive animation and interactive behavior in a way that takes
advantage of the growing XML infrastructure used in e-commerce,
publishing, and business to business communication.

"With SVG, Web Graphics move firmly from mere decoration to true
graphical information," declared Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director.
"Scalable Vector Graphics are the key to providing rich, reusable visual
content for the Web. At last, designers have the open graphics format
they need to make professional graphics not only work visually on the
Web, but perform as searchable, reusable Web content."

XML Brings Searchability, Dynamism, and Extensibility

"Designers are reaching larger audiences with an increasing variety of
Web-enabled devices from palmtops to desktops to printers. They need
graphics which can be restyled for different purposes," explained Chris
Lilley, W3C Graphics Activity Lead. "But most of all, they need to be
able to handle their graphics the same way as their text and business
data, which nowadays are in XML. SVG is specifically designed to let
them do that."

Web designers demand vendor-neutral, cross-platform interoperability.
W3C's Extensible Markup Language (XML) has become the universal format
for document and data interchange on the Web. SVG 1.0 brings the
advantages of XML to the world of vector graphics. It enables the
textual content of graphics - from logos to diagrams - to be searched,
indexed, and displayed in multiple languages. This is a significant
benefit for both accessibility and internationalization.

SVG 1.0 builds on other W3C specifications such as the Document Object
Model (DOM), which allows for easy server-side generation and dynamic,
client-side modification of graphics and text. SVG 1.0 also benefits
from W3C technologies such as CSS and XSL style sheets, RDF metadata,
XML Linking, and SMIL Animation, which also advanced to Recommendation
today.

In addition to being an excellent format for stand-alone graphics, the
full power of SVG 1.0 is seen when it is combined with other XML
grammars; for example to deliver multimedia applications, or provide
rendering capability for business data - from interactive charts to
process visualization. "The declarative facilities of SMIL Animation,
combined with scripting through the DOM, opens new possibilities for
Web-based interface design," added Dean Jackson, W3C Team Contact for
the SVG Working Group and W3C Fellow from CSIRO.

Bringing the XML advantage to vector graphics benefits all industries
which depend on rich graphics delivery - advertising, electronic
commerce, process control, mapping, financial services, and education
all have immediate needs for SVG 1.0.

SVG 1.0 Implementations Demonstrate Interoperability Through Testing

Following W3C Process, the SVG Working Group was required to prove that
their specification was sound and implementable. Through vigorous
testing, the SVG Working Group was able to demonstrate implementations
of SVG in a wide range of Open Source and commercial SVG implementations
already available in the marketplace, with more implementations under
development. 

Created by the SVG Working Group, the SVG 1.0 Test Suites play an
essential role in evaluating SVG implementations. While the changes
between the SVG 1.0 Candidate Recommendation version and the final
Recommendation are small, the SVG Test Suite, updated to match the SVG
1.0 Recommendation, is to be released once all Quality Assurance work is
complete.

Increasing numbers of drawing tools export to SVG 1.0, and SVG can now
be viewed on many platforms from desktops to handheld devices. SVG
implementations are not limited to static tools. Database-driven,
dynamically created graphics are a natural fit for SVG. Forward-looking
designers, who already understand the benefits of vector graphics, are
now gaining experience with SVG on the client and server ends, and XML
integration.

SVG Enjoys Broad, Continued Industry Support

Key industry and research players have contributed to the SVG 1.0
Specification. The newly rechartered SVG Working Group continues to
drive the technology forward with work on modularized SVG (1.1) and SVG
2.0, which focuses on profiles for mobile devices and printing. The full
list of participants are, in alphabetical order: Adobe Systems,
AOL/Netscape, Apple, Autodesk, Bitflash, Canon, Corel, CSIRO, Eastman
Kodak, Ericsson, Excosoft, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, ILOG, IntraNet Systems,
KDDI, Macromedia, Microsoft, Nokia, OASIS, Openwave, Opera, Oxford
Brookes University, Quark, Savage Software, Schemasoft, Sun
Microsystems, Xerox, and ZoomOn. 

About the World Wide Web Consortium [W3C]

The W3C was created to lead the Web to its full potential by developing
common protocols that promote its evolution and ensure its
interoperability. It is an international industry consortium jointly run
by the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science (MIT LCS) in the USA, the
National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control (INRIA)
in France and Keio University in Japan. Services provided by the
Consortium include: a repository of information about the World Wide Web
for developers and users, and various prototype and sample applications
to demonstrate use of new technology. To date, over 520 organizations
are Members of the Consortium. For more information see
http://www.w3.org/


Contact America -- 
     Janet Daly, <janet@w3.org>, +1.617.253.5884 or +1.617.253.2613 
Contact Europe -- 
     Marie-Claire Forgue, <mcf@w3.org>, +33.492.38.75.94 
Contact Asia -- 
     Saeko Takeuchi <saeko@w3.org>, +81.466.49.1170 


Testimonials for SVG
SVG Testimonials: http://www.w3.org/2001/09/svg1-testimonial
The Web version includes testimonials in French and Japanese.


Adobe Systems | BitFlash Inc. | Canon Inc. | Corel Corporation | CSIRO |
HP | ILOG | Jasc Software | KDDI | Schema Software | Primaci | Savage |
Sun Microsystems | ZoomON

Adobe is very pleased that the SVG specification has been officially
approved as a W3C Recommendation. SVG is a fundamental element of
Adobe's Network Publishing strategy as demonstrated by ongoing SVG
Viewer development, industry education through the Adobe SVG Zone, and
continued SVG feature development in the Adobe product portfolio. It
will allow developers to present dynamic data driven information in a
graphical format and empower designers to create interactive,
personalized graphics. The SVG Viewer is enjoying wide distribution as a
standard part of the Adobe Acrobat® 5.0 Reader installation. With Adobe
Illustrator® 9.0 and Adobe GoLive® 5.0 already supporting SVG, the
standard is gaining significant momentum in the web authoring,
developer, and IT communities.

-- Harry Vitelli, Senior Director, Product Management, Web Developer
Products, Adobe Systems

BitFlash is honored to participate in the W3C SVG Working Group. We are
particularly excited about the group's recognition of SVG as an
important standard. Our flagship product, the BitFlash Mobility Suite,
is an implementation of SVG technology. By delivering rich visual
functionality to mobile devices regardless of device, network, or
application, it is the first product of its kind to give users true
mobility. It is helping enterprises, carriers, device manufacturers, and
content providers visualize the future. And we see that future including
SVG.

-- Frédéric Charpentier, Chief Technology Officer, BitFlash Inc.

The Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) standard from the World Wide Web
Consortium (W3C) holds the key to unifying the imaging model and
semantic structure for displaying and printing Internet contents. Canon
welcomes SVG becoming W3C Recommendation and expects it to play an
important role as a document format used in the circulation of documents
in the Internet era.

-- Satoshi Nagata, Senior General Manager, Office Imaging Products
System Development Center 2, Canon Inc.

Corel is excited to see Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) accepted as a
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Recommendation. SVG will allow people to
exchange graphics-rich information in a format that is adaptable to the
high rate of innovation in our industry. The mobile device and Web
service industries will quickly benefit from the adoption of SVG as an
open-standard for vector graphics. SVG will provide a means for people
to communicate and experience graphics more quickly and more dynamically
on any platform, in any place. Since 1999 our CorelDRAW customers have
had access to the powerful SVG import and export capabilities that make
it easy to share and preserve vector images. SVG removes the limitations
on where and when graphics can be used and will allow communications to
advance as quickly as our imaginations can cultivate new ideas. Its XML
foundation, scalability and interactivity make SVG the natural evolution
in graphics standards, empowering our customers to create anytime and
anywhere, and introducing all new possibilities in dynamic and
interactive graphics." -- .

-- Rene Schmidt, Chief Technology Officer, Corel Corporation

CSIRO is very pleased to see SVG become a Recommendation and also
pleased to have participated in such an effective international
collaborative effort. As Australia's premier research and development
organisation, CSIRO believes that SVG has tremendous potential across a
wide range of markets including web-enabled graphics, desktop
publishing, and especially mobile computing, which is recognised as a
major growth area. SVG will have significant impact in the mobile
marketplace as an enabling technology.

-- Dr Geoff Garrett, Chief Executive Officer, CSIRO Australia

Hewlett Packard believes strongly that, only through open standards,
will the true potential of the internet be realized. Open standards,
such as SVG, insure that the power of the web will be available to the
broadest number of businesses and people around the world. SVG will play
an important role in facilitating the flow of information across the
internet. SVG combines a powerful imaging and XML content model that can
be widely deployed to meet a myriad of content management needs.

-- Lee Caldwell, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Imaging &
Printing Systems, Hewlett Packard

The SVG specification will be an important milestone in the progression
of the Web as a more user-centric environment. As the future of web
graphics, SVG will allow for the creation of richer, more interactive
web sites with graphical content that can be more easily exchanged over
the Web. ILOG is pleased to have been a part of bringing it into being -
as a W3C SVG working group member, as a vendor with one of the first
commercial products to support SVG, ILOG JViews, and finally, as an open
source contributor with Batik, the Apache XML toolkit for SVG.

-- Patrick Albert, Chief Technology Officer, ILOG

Jasc Software supports efforts to create Web standards that are open and
accessible to all vendors and end-users, and we are very pleased to see
the SVG specification approved as a W3C Recommendation. Through the use
of SVG authoring programs such as Jasc WebDraw, Web designers and
developers of all levels will be able to immediately begin transforming
the Web into a truly interactive and visually attractive form of
communication.

-- Kris Tufto, CEO, Jasc Software

KDDI, a major Japanese cellular phone career (infrastructure provider),
has committed to popularizing the Web service for cellular phone, and
KDDI R&D Laboratories, a leading expert of information and
tele-communication technology, is currently developing the SVG contents
sharing platform. By the emergence of open vector graphics "SVG" with
high interactivity and extensibility, we strongly believe that SVG will
become the major communication media for future cellular phone users.

-- Shuichi Matsumoto, Executive Director, KDDI R&D Laboratories
Incorporated

Primaci is excited about the future of SVG for data visualization, and
congratulates the W3C on reaching recommendation status. Visualizing
large datasets, especially with Bioinformatic data, means you need crisp
responsive graphics in a format easy to manipulate. SVG, with its XML
syntax is a natural fit for Primaci, as it marries visualization
capabilities with our XML expertise.

-- Chris Boothroyd, CTO Primaci, A Life Science Company

Savage Software is pleased to support recommendation status for SVG. As
members of the current W3C Working Group, we will use our expertise to
contribute to the further development of the SVG specification. Savage
Software uses SVG not only to visualize content, but as our backbone
format for converting and enhancing all types of data with our
DataSlinger product. Using SVG, we have been able to deliver data-rich
interactive content to a multitude of devices, and new opportunities
arise each day we work with SVG.

-- Scott Wiebe, President, Savage Software

As experienced SVG software consultants and active participants since
the SVG Working Group's inception, SchemaSoft is thrilled with W3C's
endorsement of SVG. Higher quality, more interactive graphical Web
content is now possible at snappier download speeds. By generating SVG
content on the fly from server data, the next generation of distributed
Web applications and services will provide much more powerful,
compelling graphical front ends. SchemaSoft makes such graphically rich
Web applications possible with "Catwalk", its tool for fast and easy
creation of SVG-generating Web applications.

-- Philip Mansfield, President, Schema Software Inc.

Sun strongly endorses SVG 1.0 as a W3C Recommendation. We have been
contributing to W3C's SVG work and to Apache's open-source Batik
project, which has been making excellent progress towards its goal of
fully implementing SVG. With the availability of a completed, stable SVG
specification and the latest release of Batik, developers and users can
create, view, and exchange graphical content between applications and
across the Web in an interoperable and economical fashion.

-- Vincent Hardy, Senior Staff Engineer at Sun Microsystems, W3C Fellow
and co-founder of the Batik team

ZoomON is the maker of graphics authoring tools and graphics application
for mobile environments. We are very pleased by the release of SVG 1.0
as a W3C Recommendation. We believe that SVG will play a significant
role in mobile graphical applications where scalability and size of the
graphical content are of high importance for the user experience. ZoomON
has demonstrated it's commitment to SVG by adding SVG 1.0 filters to
it's line of authoring tools.

-- Casper Harnung, Chief Technology Officer, ZoomON AB



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Received on Wednesday, 5 September 2001 10:32:43 UTC