Page 7 - GAO-02-327 Electronic Government: Challenges to Effective Adoption of the Extensible Markup Language

Executive Summary

to transfer the information to a separate computer program for further
statistical analyses.

An agreed-upon standard for labeling or “tagging” each element of the
computerized data set could facilitate the automatic identification and
processing of such information. For example, the economist’s Web page
would likely display many numbers representing specific pieces of
information. The number “2,400,000.00” might appear, representing the
value of soybeans produced in a given place at a given time. Even if the
economist’s computer had been programmed to analyze agricultural cost
data, it would not be able to recognize that “2,400,000.00” referred to a
specific value for soybeans at a given place and time, unless the number
were tagged with that descriptive information in a format the computer
system understood. Tagging data according to standard formats and
definitions would allow systems that recognize those standards to readily
understand and process the data.

Currently, the XML set of standards is generally considered to be a
primary candidate for filling the role of an Internet family of standards for
tagging data. If implemented broadly and consistently, XML offers the
promise of making it significantly easier for organizations and individuals
to identify, integrate, and process complex information that may initially
be widely dispersed among systems and organizations. For example, law
enforcement agencies could potentially better identify and retrieve
information about criminal suspects from any number of federal, state,
and local databases. Further, XML could also make it easier to conduct
business transactions over the Internet, because it offers a standard way to
label and package the information that needs to be exchanged to conduct
electronic business.

Rather than a single specification, XML is a collection of related standards.
Two types of standards are essential for effective use of XML across
organizations in either the public or private sector: (1) technical standards,
which define the basic rules for tagging, structuring, and displaying
information; and (2) business standards, which provide the vocabulary and
protocols for conducting business electronically. The core XML standard
was designed to accommodate a wide variety of supplemental standards,
or extensions, to address additional functions and meet specialized needs.

XML is not the first attempt by IT developers—or the federal
government—to standardize the process of data exchange. Much effort,
for example, was spent over many years to develop the Electronic Data
Interchange (EDI) standards, which remain in use today and are expected

Page 3 GAO-02-327 Electronic Government