Licensed under
Loosely based on AI1P01
The text of the TEI Guidelines (P4) is currently maintained as an XML expression of the original ODD format files used to produce P2. This format is increasingly hard to maintain using current tools, and is also in need of revision to support new facilities, in particular the ability to generate expressions of the Guidelines in schema languages other than SGML DTD fragments.
There is a continued need for a simple and accessible TEI-conformant means of documenting markup languages in general. The TEI tag set for tag set documentation (TEI Guidelines, chapter 27), originally proposed for this task, is in need of revision in the light of developments in document markup technologies and techniques. It also needs to be better integrated with the TEI core tagsets, to facilitate use of the TEI as a document authoring environment.
The TEI Council has therefore resolved (see the Conference Call on 21 Jan 2003) to set up a
- The ODD format should be revised to be entirely independent of the XML notation for DTDs
- The ODD format and the current TEI DTD for tag documentation (TSD) should be re-expressed as a TEI additional module.
- The new module should facilitate generation of XML DTDs and also of at least one XML schema format.
- Tools (e.g. XSLT stylesheets) should be specified which are able
to
- automatically convert the current P4 ODDs to the new format
- process the new format to produce outputs equivalent to at least the current published forms of P4 (i.e. as XML, as HTML, as PDF, as XML DTDs, and as Relax NG schema)
- process the outputs from the previous step in the same way as the current Pizza Chef, to allow user production of customized TEI views, expressed as DTDs or schemas, and with user-selected documentation
The task force should review the current methods of producing and maintaining TEI P4 and make specific proposals for enhancing them in line with the above objectives. A suggested preliminary work plan for production of TEI P5 is provided in TC W02 which also provides additional background. The work plan for the task force will be determined by agreement of its members, and should be documented either by revision of document TCW02, or by production of a new document, to be maintained by the task force chair.
The head of the task force is Sebastian Rahtz. Council members who have volunteered to participate are Laurent Romary, David Durand, and Christian Wittern. Invited experts who have also agreed to participate are Norm Walsh and C.M. Sperberg-McQueen. The Head may also invite other appropriate experts to participate at his discretion. The TEI Editors are ex officio members of the task force, as of all TEI work groups. Other constraints and procedures applicable to all TEI work groups are as described in document TEI ED W54.
No budget has been allocated to the task force, but application may be made to the Council for one face to face meeting in due course.
The task force is required to provide progress reports on its work regularly to the TEI Technical Council, which has authority for approving its technical output.
Members of the task force will communicate using a mailing list and (optionally) by conference call. Their proceedings should be made accessible to any member of the Council, and decisions documented formally on an appropriate part of the TEI web site.
- Review TEI TCW02 and current ODD documentation (4 weeks)
- Produce ODD-conformant definition for Son of ODD (6 weeks; due mid May)
- Revise Son of ODD specification following Council review (2 weeks)
- Specify, test, and review tools (6 weeks; due July)
- Assist editors in production of first draft of P5 (i.e. P4 in the new format) in time for Annual Members meeting at end October 2003
- Draft documentation of new format as a TEI module for public comment and discussion before submitting as formal proposal by January 2004