hersh@decvax.dec.com (Harry Hersh UEG) (07/22/88)
July 18, 1988
The Open Software Foundation is pleased to send you the
attached Request For Technology. This RFT is intended to solicit
input from user interface technologies that may be incorporated into
the OSF Application Environment Specification.
We consider the user interface an important starting point for
the OSF technology acquisition and development program.
Sophisticated user interface technologies are becoming increasingly
popular in end-user computing, and numerous software (and
hardware) vendors are developing related products. OSF considers
the user interface a key component in our own technology repertoire,
and we see the upcoming technology selection process as a valuable
test of our open selection and development policies.
The attached RFT presents certain submission criteria that
OSF considers mandatory, and it lists evaluation criteria that will
be used in selecting one or more OSF technologies. Not all
submissions are expected to fulfill all the stated criteria; even so,
we urge all interested vendors to submit relevant offerings PP these
may be considered for future integration into the OSF environment.
Response to this RFT is due by September 16, 1988. OSF staff
will review the submissions against the mandatory requirements
and will designate candidate technologies qualifying for detailed
review. The results of this preliminary review will be announced at
an OSF membership meeting planned for the last week of September,
1988. Qualifying organizations will be invited to present their
technologies at this meeting.
The Member Technology Review Meeting, planned for the first
week of November, 1988, will provide a forum for OSF members to
review technologies with the contributing organizations and the OSF
staff.
Following the Member Technology Review Meeting, OSF staff
will evaluate submitted technologies and membership inputs.
Finally, the OSF will announce the selected technologies along with
the selection rationale.
If your organization has technology related to this RFT, we
encourage you to prepare a submission for consideration. Moreover,
we encourage you to participate in the OSF as a member PP
membership review of new technology solicitations is just one of
many benefits available to OSF members. You can obtain additional
copies or make inquiries about the User Environment Component RFT
by calling the OSF RFT Inquiry Desk at (508) 683-6803 or by writing
to:
Open Software Foundation
20 Ballard Way
Lawrence, MA 01843
Attention: RFT Inquiries Desk
We look forward to working with your organization in this
important endeavor.
----------------------------
Request For Technology -- User Environment Component
Preface
The Open Software Foundation (OSF) is soliciting graphical user
interface technologies to form the initial User Environment
Component of its Application Environment Specification. This
Request For Technology describes the scope of the technologies, the
mandatory requirements, key selection criteria, and the submission
and evaluation process.
OSF wants to establish a user interface standard to meet two goals:
1) to allow applications to be ported easily between different
platforms, and 2) to encourage appropriate levels of user interface
consistency between applications. The first goal increases the total
number of applications available on OSF-conforming platforms,
while the second goal allows users to transfer their skills quickly
when learning new applications.
The technology selection process will follow fundamental principles
of the OSF and will address the need for portability,
interoperability, and scalability.
Scope
The User Environment Component (UEC) will consist of a Style Guide,
an Application Program Interface, and the documentation, utilities,
and run-time libraries required to support application development
and operation. The Style Guide will describe a direct manipulation,
graphical user interface and will address conventions regarding
visual appearance; user, group, and application interactions; and
those aspects of information management that affect the user
environment. The Application Program Interface will provide the
mechanisms by which programs implement the conventions put forth
in the Style Guide.
The scope of OSF's initial UEC will depend upon the completeness and
compatibility of the submitted technologies.
Mandatory Requirements
All candidate technologies must meet the following minimal requirements.
1. Standards Conformity
Submissions shall be consistent and conformant with the MIT X
Window System(tm), Version 11 and the IEEE standard 1003.1
(POSIX(tm)) system interface specification. Submissions may include
conforming extensions to these interfaces.
Submissions shall be written in ANSI C.
The Application Program Interface must support applications
written in ANSI C and must not preclude other OSF programming
languages.1
2. Portability
Submissions shall be portable across a wide range of hardware
platforms.
3. Product Readiness
Submissions shall be demonstrable to the OSF staff on request
and capable of being shipped commercially during the first half of
1989.
4. National Language Support
Submissions shall be capable of supporting a broad range of
national languages, including at least European, Semitic and Asian
Languages.
5. Testing and Validation Support
Submissions shall include provisions for automated testing of
UEC facilities. A validation suite of applications or other validation
utilities that test facilities of the submission shall be included.
6. Reasonable and Equitable Licensing Terms
The submitter must have the authority to grant OSF a license
under reasonable terms to use, modify and/or sublicense the
submitted technologies.
Key Evaluation Criteria
In general, submissions should provide a high level of interactive
performance; they should promote interoperability within
heterogeneous networked computing environments, and should scale
over a range of machine types.
Some additional criteria by which technologies will be evaluated
include:
- Extensibility, both to allow for additional user interface components that
may be required by special application domains, and to
support future extensions to the X protocol;
- Completeness and effectiveness of the development environment,
including the library of interaction primitives, and the end-user
environment;
- Provision for embedded training and help facilities;
- Availability of facilities for the interactive design of user interfaces;
- Support for keyboard-only interaction;
- Provision for compatibility with future versions of the UEC;
- Adherence to good software engineering practices.
Consideration will be given to other criteria such as user utility,
breadth of applicability, application base, visual appearance, and
innovation.
What to Submit
Technology submissions must include the following items:
1. A five page summary of the proposal including a response to each
of the mandatory requirements and discussion relating to the key
evaluation criteria;
2. A copy of the Application Program Interface specification and
corresponding Style Guide document;
3. Proposed license and business terms;
4. The sources for at least one sample application that
demonstrates the properties of the submission along with
illustrative screen images from the application;
5. Any other materials the submitter deems relevant to this
evaluation process, such as internals documentation and
functional specifications.
Source code for the proposed technology should not be submitted but
must be available for inspection by OSF staff on request.
Confidential material is not being solicited at this time. When
examination of confidential material becomes necessary,
appropriate non-disclosure arrangements will be made with the
individual vendor or vendors involved.
Evaluation Process and Milestones
Submissions are due to OSF by September 16, 1988. OSF will review
submissions against mandatory requirements of this RFT and will
designate candidate technologies qualifying for detailed evaluation.
Submitters of qualifying technologies will be given an opportunity
to present their material at an OSF membership meeting to be
scheduled during the last week of September, 1988.
A Member Technology Review Meeting, planned for the first week in
November of 1988, will provide a forum for OSF members to review
technologies with the contributing organizations and the OSF staff.
Following the Member Technology Review Meeting, OSF staff will
evaluate the candidate technologies and membership inputs. Finally,
the OSF will publicly announce the selected technologies along with
the selection rationale.
How to Submit
Send submissions to:
Open Software Foundation
20 Ballard Way
Lawrence, MA 01843
Questions concerning this RFT should be directed to:
RFT Inquiries Desk
(508) 683 6803
____________________
X Window System is a trademark of Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
POSIX is a trademark of Institute of Electrical and Electronic
Engineers (IEEE).
1 The set of OSF Application Environment Specification LevelJ0 languages
includes: C, COBOL, Pascal, Basic (Minimum), Basic (Full), FORTRAN,
Ada, and Common Lisp.kramerj@beasley.CS.ORST.EDU (Jack Kramer - OSU Gene Res) (07/25/88)
I vote for X windows, Open Look, and C++.