FW: WebCGM vs. SVG

Technical Fellow - Graphics/Digital Data Interchange
Boeing Commercial Airplane
206.544.3560, fax 206.662.3734
david.w.cruikshank@boeing.com

Dave,

I have 10 main questions here with some sub-questions contained inside of them. When reviewing these questions, if you find your responses are different for WebCGM than CGM, please delineate the two. Sir, I thank you very much for your time, and don’t feel like I need these answered right away. Please, take your time and respond when is easiest for your schedule.

1) Can you cite any examples of implementation of CGM/illustrations in:

a. Industrial or major commercial applications

b. Universities

c. Government applications

2) Is the use of CGM in the marketplace expanding or contracting?

3) What is your take on the advantages of CGM / WebCGM over SVG? Are they implementation related, or do you see technical advantages?

4) What major product leaders have adopted CGM as their graphics standard? In what capacity? What drove them to CGM?

5) Has Boeing implemented SVG in any capacity?

6) Is there a competing open source graphics format that provides the functionality advantages of CGM (scalable vector, supports linking, hotspots, and rollovers)?

7) Does Microsoft have any concrete plans to provide native support to CGM / WebCGM in Internet Explorer? If so, when is the earliest you would estimate such support would be offered?

8) What are the drawbacks of CGM? Is the fact it is not XML-based hurting its status in the market?

9) Do different browsers render CGM differently? What about WebCGM…can a viewer designed for CGM view WebCGM as well?

10) What is the continuing viability of CGM? Are there any hurdles yet to face for this proven technology?

Thank you again, Dave, for your valuable time.

Highest regards,

Greg

From: Cruikshank, David W [mailto:david.w.cruikshank@boeing.com]
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 6:53 PM
To: Schaap, Gregory J.
Subject: RE: WebCGM vs. SVG

Greg,

I'd be interested is seeing what kind of questions you are looking to be answered. Working technical illustration interchange at the standards level for the last 16 years has given me a lot of insight.

I could be available for a telecon, but would like to review questions ahead.

thx...Dave Cruikshank

Technical Fellow - Graphics/Digital Data Interchange
Boeing Commercial Airplane
206.544.3560, fax 206.662.3734
david.w.cruikshank@boeing.com

From: Schaap, Gregory J. [mailto:Gregory.Schaap@bpmionline.net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 5:34 AM
To: Lofton Henderson; Cruikshank, David W; dieter Weidenbrueck
Subject: RE: WebCGM vs. SVG

Mr. Henderson,

Thank you for your prompt reply. I wish you a fun and relaxing vacation. I have previously read your and Herr Weidenbrück’s linked WebCGM / SVG comparison and found it very informative.

I believe Mr. Cruikshank, based on his experience of WebCGM in aviation applications, would be an excellent reference for my team. Mr. Cruikshank, Sir, it would be greatly appreciated if my team could pose some questions to you at a time of your choosing. A teleconference would be very beneficial, but if your schedule (no rush) does not allow for it, I have a list of a dozen or so questions prepared for an e-mail exchange.

Herr Weidenbrück, my team is already in contact with Mr. Scott Allshouse (PTC) in Redding, CA who will also lend us a hand. Scott is familiar with our organization and will be of great assistance. Thank you for your time and enjoy the remainder of your vacation.

Gentlemen, I thank you all again for your time and help.

Highest regards,

Greg Schaap

From: Lofton Henderson [mailto:lofton@rockynet.com]
Sent: Monday, July 16, 2007 6:36 PM
To: Schaap, Gregory J.
Cc: David Cruikshank; dieter Weidenbrueck
Subject: Re: WebCGM vs. SVG

Dear Mr. Schaap,

I would be happy to confer with you on the question of WebCGM versus SVG for your application, except that I am commencing vacation shortly and won't be available or have email contact till after August 1st.

In case you don't wish to wait that long, I have taken the liberty to copy a couple of my colleagues, both of whom are fellow members of the CGM Open Steering Committee -- David Cruikshank is a WebCGM user at Boeing and proponent of its use in aviation applications, and Dieter Weidenbrueck is a vendor of technical illustration software that supports both WebCGM and SVG.

I'm sure that either or both would be happy to confer in my absence. (Note, I believe that Dieter may be on vacation at the present time, for a few days more.)

Meanwhile, in case you haven't already found it, here is some background reading on the topic:
http://www.cgmopen.org/technical/webcgm_svg.htm .

This paper and many other resources are linked from the CGM Open Web site:
http://www.cgmopen.org/

Best regards,
-Lofton Henderson.

At 02:40 PM 7/16/2007 -0400, Schaap, Gregory J. wrote:

Good afternoon, Mr. Henderson. My name is Greg Schaap and I work as an IT Project Developer for a large engineering firm. We are conducting a market analysis to determine the correct route for our Interactive Electronic technical manual illustrations. Our books are currently viewed in HTML and are SGML based, but soon we will be converting to XML. Our initial inclination was to look hard at SVG, but with Adobe no longer supporting their plug-in, the number of possible implementations seems to have withered. We have begun moving in the direction of SVG, but have not fully committed to it and now is the time to decide whether or not WebCGM (or another format) may be the best avenue.

If you have time, Sir, we are wondering if you could answer a few of our questions either over e-mail or via Teleconference. A teleconference would be kept as brief as possible, and may help stimulate other questions based off your responses to previously identified questions. Thank you for your time, and please let me know if such an information exchange is possible.

Highest regards,

Greg Schaap
Project Development Group
Information Systems Department
Bechtel

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