Slide 1

A Need for Standards

Slide 2

Outline:

• What are standards?

• Why push for standardization?

• International standardization, why is it needed?

• International Standards Bodies

• National Standards Bodies

• Documents & Series

• IETF standardization process

• How ISO standards are developed

• Obtaining standard documents

Slide 3

What are standards?

• Standards are documented agreements containing technical specifications to be used consistently as rules, guidelines, or definitions of characteristics, to ensure that materials, products, processes and services are fit for their purpose.

• International Standards contribute to making life simpler, and to increasing the reliability and effectiveness of the goods and services we use.

Slide 4

Why push for standardization?

• Industry-wide standardization is a condition existing within a particular industrial sector when the large majority of products or services conform to the same standards.

• It results from consensus agreements reached between all economic players in that industrial sector - suppliers, users, and often governments.

Slide 5

Why push for standardization?(continued)

• The aim is to facilitate trade, exchange and technology transfer through:– Enhanced product quality and reliability at a reasonable

price.

– Greater compatibility and interoperability of goods and services.

– Simplification for improved usability.

– Increased distribution efficiency, and ease of maintenance.

Slide 6

International standardization:Why is it needed?

• International standardization is now well-established for very many technologies in such diverse fields as information processing and communications, textiles, packaging, distribution of goods, energy production and utilization, shipbuilding, banking and financial services.

• It will continue to grow in importance for all sectors of industrial activity for the foreseeable future.

Slide 7

International standardization:(continued)

• The main reasons are:– Worldwide progress in trade liberalization– Interpenetration of sectors– Global standards needs for emerging

technologies– Developing countries– Worldwide communications systems

Slide 8

Worldwide communicationssystems:

• The computer industry offers a good example of technology that needs quickly and progressively to be standardized at a global level. ISO’s OSI basic reference model is a good example.

• Full compatibility among open systems fosters healthy competition among producers, and offers real options to users since it is a powerful catalyst for innovation, improved productivity and cost-cutting.

Slide 9

What makes up a standard?

• What does a standard look like? - ISO explains the major components of their standards documents:– It can be anything from a four-page document to a

1000-page tome, including twice the weight of the standard itself in informative annexes.

– It may specify the tasks that a certain range of equipment must be able to perform, or describe in detail an apparatus and its safety features.

Slide 10

What makes up a standard?(continued)

• It may contain:– Symbols– Definitions– Diagrams– Codes– Test methods.

Slide 11

International Standards Bodies:ISO

• The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies from some 100 countries, one from each country.

• ISO is a non-governmental organization established in 1947.

Slide 12

International Standards Bodies:ISO (continued)

• The mission of ISO is to promote the development of standardization & related activities in the world with a view to facilitating the international exchange of goods & services, and to developing cooperation in the spheres of intellectual, scientific, technological & economic activity.

• ISO's work results in international agreements which are published as International Standards.

Slide 13

International Standards Bodies:ITU-T (formerly CCITT)

• The ITU (International Telecommunications Union), headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland is an international organization within which governments & the private sector coordinate global telecom networks and services.

• ITU activities include: – The coordination, development, regulation and

standardization of telecommunications.

– Organization of regional & world TELECOM events.

Slide 14

International Standards Bodies:IETF

• The Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) is the protocol engineering and development arm of the Internet.

• The IETF is a large open international community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture and the smooth operation of the Internet.

• It is open to any interested individual.

Slide 15

International Standards Bodies:IETF (continued)

• The actual technical work of the IETF is done in its working groups, which are organized by topic into several areas (e.g., routing, network management, security, etc.)

• Much of the work is handled via mailing lists, however, the IETF also holds meetings three times per year.

Slide 16

International Standards Bodies:ISOC

• The Internet SOCiety is the international organization for global cooperation and coordination for the Internet and its internetworking technologies and applications.

• Its members reflect the breadth of the entire Internet community and consist of individuals, corporations, non-profit organizations, and government agencies.

Slide 17

International Standards Bodies:ISOC (continued)

• Its principal purpose is to maintain and extend the development and availability of the Internet and its associated technologies and applications - both as an end in itself, and as a means of enabling organizations, professions, and individuals worldwide to more effectively collaborate, cooperate, and innovate in their respective fields and interests.

Slide 18

International Standards Bodies:ISOC (continued)

• Its specific goals and purposes include:– Development, maintenance, evolution, and

dissemination of standards for the Internet and its internetworking technologies and applications;

– Growth and evolution of the Internet architecture;

– Maintenance and evolution of effective administrative processes necessary for operation of the global Internet and internets;

– Education and research related to the Internet and internetworking;

Slide 19

International Standards Bodies:W3C

• The World Wide Web Consortium promotes the Web by producing specifications and reference software.

• W3C is funded by industrial members but its products are freely available to all.

• The Consortium is run by MIT LCS with INRIA acting as European host and Keio University in Asia, in collaboration with CERN where the web originated.

Slide 20

International Standards Bodies:W3C (continued)

• Universal Access: To make the Web accessible to all by promoting technologies that take into account the vast differences of users on all continents;

• Semantic Web: To develop a software environment that permits each user to make the best use of the resources available on the Web;

• Web of Trust: To guide the Web's development with careful consideration for the novel legal, commercial, and social issues raised by this technology.

Slide 21

International Standards Bodies:IEEE

• The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is the world's largest technical professional society.

• A non-profit organization, the IEEE promotes the engineering process of creating, developing, integrating, sharing, and applying knowledge about electro and information technologies and sciences for the benefit of humanity and the profession .

Slide 22

International Standards Bodies:ACM

• Association for Computing Machinery (founded 1947) is an international scientific and educational organization dedicated to advancing the art, science, engineering, and application of information technology, serving both professional and public interests by fostering the open interchange of information and by promoting the highest professional and ethical standards.

• Since its inception ACM has provided its members and the world of computer science a forum for the sharing of knowledge on developments and achievements necessary to the fruitful interchange of ideas.

Slide 23

International Standards Bodies:ACM (continued)

• Over the years ACM has flourished along with the industry itself, playing a major role in enriching the quality, form and function of computer usage.

• ACM forms Special Interest Groups (SIGs) which focus on specific areas of computer science. Some SIGs which relate to data communications include:– Data Communication (SIGCOMM)– Hypertext/Hypermedia (SIGLINK)– Multimedia (SIGMM)

Slide 24

International Standards Bodies:Forums: ATM Forum

• The Asynchronous Transfer Mode Forum is a worldwide organization, aimed at promoting ATM within the industry and the end user community.

• Formed in 1991, the ATM Forum membership currently includes approximately 80 companies representing all sectors of the communications and computer industries, as well as a number of government agencies and research organizations.

Slide 25

National Standards Bodies:ANSI

• Founded in 1918, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), is a private, not-for-profit membership organization that coordinates the U.S. voluntary consensus standards system and approves American National Standards.

• ANSI consists of approximately 1,300 national and international companies, 30 government agencies, 20 institutional members, and 250 professional, technical, trade, labor and consumer organizations.

Slide 26

National Standards Bodies:ANSI (continued)

• ANSI’s mission is to enhance both the global competitiveness of U.S. business and the U.S. quality of life by promoting and facilitating voluntary consensus standards and conformity assessment systems, and safeguarding their integrity.

• Integral to the development and approval process is the requirement that all interests concerned have the opportunity to participate in the development process.

Slide 27

National Standards Bodies:NIST

• The National Institute of Standards and Technology was established by Congress "to assist industry in the development of technology ... needed to improve product quality, to modernize manufacturing processes, to ensure product reliability ... and to facilitate rapid commercialization ... of products based on new scientific discoveries."

• NIST's primary mission is to promote U.S. economic growth by working with industry to develop and apply technology, measurements, and standards.

Slide 28

Standards Documents and Series:RFC

• RFC (request for comments) are publicly available documents which track the growth of all Internet-related protocols.

• All TCP/IP protocol implementations must be based on RFCs to ensure interoperability with other Internet protocols.

• RFCs can be in one of several protocol states and have different protocol status.

Slide 29

Standards Documents and Series:ITU-T: X series

Data networks and open system communications• Public data networks - Interfaces:

– X.21 - Interface between Data Terminal Equipment (DTE) and Data Circuit-terminating Equipment (DCE) for synchronous operation on public data networks.

• OSI - Model and notation:– X.200 - Information technology – Open Systems

Interconnection – Basic Reference Model: The basic model.

Slide 30

Standards Documents and Series:ITU-T: X series (continued)

• Message Handling Systems:– X.400 - Message handling services: Message handling

system and service overview

• Directory Services:– X.500 - Information technology - Open Systems

Interconnection - The Directory: Overview of concepts, models and services

• Security:– X.800 - Security architecture for Open Systems

Interconnection for CCITT applications.

Slide 31

Standards Documents and Series:ITU-T: V series

Data communication over the telephone network• Interworking with other networks:

– V.18 - Operational and interworking requirements for DCEs operating in the text telephone mode.

• Interfaces and voice-band modems:– V.33 - 14 400 bits per second modem standardized for

use on point-to-point 4-wire leased telephone-type circuits.

• Error control:– V.42 - Error-correcting procedures for DCEs using

asynchronous-to-synchronous conversion.

Slide 32

Standards Documents and Series:ITU-T: Q series

Switching and signalling• General Recommendations relative to signaling

and switching systems:– Q.20 - Comparative advantages of "in-band" and "out-

band" systems.

• Functional description of the signaling system:– Q.251 - General

• Definition and function of signals:– Q.254 - Telephone signals.

Slide 33

Standards Documents and Series:ITU-T: Q series (continued)

• Signalling System No. 7 (SS#7):– Q.700 - Introduction to CCITT Signalling System No. 7

• Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN):– Q.860 - Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)

and Broadband Integrated Services Digital Network (B-ISDN) Generic Addressing and Transport (GAT) Protocol

– Q.2010 - Broadband integrated services digital network overview - Signaling capability set 1, release 1

Slide 34

Computer Science TechnicalReports, Papers, and Journals:

• Computer Science Technical Reports (CSTR):– The Corporation for National Research

Initiatives (CNRI) is working with five leading universities to develop concepts for digital libraries.

– As part of the project, each university is placing its Computer Science Technical Reports and related reports on-line.

Slide 35

Computer Science TechnicalReports (continued):

– In addition, CNRI and the universities researching on aspects of storage, search, retrieval & info. display in the Digital Library.

– The Five Participating Universities are:1. Carnegie Mellon University

2. Cornell University

3. University of California at Berkeley

4. Stanford University

5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Slide 36

Computer Science Technical Papers:

• Technical Papers:– Various papers are freely available on the

Internet which help expand the coverage of standards and other industry trends.

– Most universities, organizations, and project groups make their findings available on the WWW in the form of white-papers or technical articles.

Slide 37

Computer Science Technical Papers (continued):

– Most sites offer access and searching mechanisms for retrieving technical papers:

• AT&T Network Bibliography

• Internet Accessible Libraries

• General search forms which cover topics over many sites.

– Most good technical papers find their way into popular journals.

Slide 38

Popular Journal Publications:IEEE

• Magazines:

– IEEE Communications

– IEEE Personal Communications

– IEEE Networks

– IEEE Software

– IEEE MultiMedia

– IEEE Computer

• Transactions:

– IEEE Transactions on Computers

– IEEE Transactions on Communications

– IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking

– IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering

Slide 39

Popular Journal Publications:ACM

• Publications:

– Communications of the ACM

– Journal of the ACM

– Computing Surveys

– Computing Reviews

• Other Journals:

– Information Systems

– Computer Systems

– Networking

– Standardization

– Multimedia Systems

Slide 40

IETF standardization processfor Internet Protocols

• The Internet protocol standardization process evolves documents through various states, achieving different levels of status.

• A document defining a protocol enters at the Internet Activities Board in the initial state. It then, with approval, gets passed to the IETF for consideration and testing.

• During the process, the document can pass through different status and follow different evolution tracks.

Slide 41

IETF standardization process:Protocol States and Tracks

• Initial - Protocol was submitted for consideration

• Proposed Standard - Proposal undergoing initial screening.

• Draft Standard - Semi-final form, independent implementations are constructed and it’s RFC is reviewed.

• Standard - Protocol is now officially a part of the TCP/IP protocol suite, after review and acceptance.

• Experimental - Protocol is not being considered for standardization.

• Historic - Unused protocols are considered obsolete.

Slide 42

IETF standardization process:Status Levels

• Required - All hosts and gateways must implement a required protocol.

• Recommended - Implementation of this protocol is encouraged but not required.

• Elective - Hosts and gateways can choose to implement this protocol at will.

• Limited use - Protocol is not intended for general use (experimental)

• Not Recommended - Obsolete protocols are not recommended.

Slide 43

IETF standardization process:(continued)

• A protocol can cycle through the standards track (draft - proposed) and never become an actual standard.

• The evolution cycle usually, on average, takes 6 months per state and may take up to two years before becoming a standard.

Slide 44

How ISO standardsare developed:

• ISO standards are developed according to the following principles:– Consensus - The views of all interests are taken into

account

– Industry-wide - Global solutions to satisfy industries and customers worldwide.

– Voluntary - International standardization is market-driven and based on voluntary involvement of interests in the market-place.

Slide 45

How ISO standardsare developed (continued)

• Three main phases in the ISO standards development process:

• Phase one involves definition of the technical scope of the future standard.

• Phase two is entered during which countries negotiate the detailed specifications within the standard (consensus-building phase)

• Phase three comprises the formal approval of the resulting draft International Standard, following which the agreed text is published as an ISO International Standard.

Slide 46

How ISO standardsare developed (continued)

• Most standards require periodic revision. Several factors combine to render a standard out of date: technological evolution, new methods and materials, new quality and safety requirements.

• ISO has established the general rule that all ISO standards should be reviewed at intervals of not more than five years. On occasion, it is necessary to revise a standard earlier.

Slide 47

Obtaining standard documents:

• Standards bodies distribute their documents in several file formats and to different groups or organizations.

• Many standards must be purchased before you may implement products based on them. However, the documents are free.

• Some standards bodies require payment up-front before you are permitted access to the standards documents.

Slide 48

Obtaining standard documents:(continued)

• Still other standards bodies take an open approach where documents are entirely free to readers and implementation vendors (RFCs).

• Most standards are available on the Internet via FTP, Gopher, or the WWW.

• Many sites have search engines which allow users to obtain different documents, all of which pertain to the same standard / protocol.

Slide 49

Obtaining standard documents:(continued)

• Document Formats:– Text / ASCII - most popular format.

– Postscript - requires a postscript printer or TeX / LaTeX to view.

– Word for Windows - Microsoft Windows editor.

– HTML - browseable documents with links to other references.

– PDF - Adobe Acrobat hyper-link format.

Slide 50

Obtaining standard documents:(continued)

• Document Languages:– Most international standards bodies offer their

documents written in popular spoken languages, including:

• English

• French

• Spanish

• National language of the organization’s origin.

Slide 51

Does Standardization Help?

• Users have more confidence in products and services that conform to International Standards.

• Assurance of conformity can be provided by manufacturers' declarations, or by audits carried out by independent bodies.

Slide 52

Industry Control and Acceptance

• Commonly in today’s computer industry, the acceptance of products are facilitated by the conformance to and support of standards.

• Most products become obsolete if they are only based on proprietary specifications and do not support standards.

• If a company maintains control over the majority of products based on a particular technology, that company can usually dictate the direction of the industry and any standards to follow.