Z3986 Requirements Gathering

The official requirements gathering activity has concluded. Since the Z3986 Maintenance Committee always welcomes the community's input with regard to the evolution of the Standard, we will continue to offer this space for the submission of new requirements, as well as comments on existing ones. Be aware that the Committee will take submissions after March 31, 2008 into account, as much as possible, but the primary focus for future standards development will be on the ideas submitted on or before March 31, 2008.

We appreciate the community's active participation to date and look forward to working with all of you in support of future innovation. If you have questions, please feel free to use the Contact Us form, and choose the category 'Z3986 Standards'.

Overview

As many around the world recognize, the DAISY/NISO Specification and DAISY content offer access to those who cannot read standard print publications. The content and the standard provide an opportunity for libraries and organizations that primarily serve persons with disabilities to create and distribute enhanced reading materials that are accessible to everyone, regardless of ability to read print.

The DAISY/NISO Standards are being used in mainstream sectors as well. The International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF) references portions of the specification in their own standard, the Open Publication Structure (OPS) 2.0 specification. Likewise, in the United States, a portion of the DAISY/NISO Standard is referenced as the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (1.1).

The mainstream audio and print publishing industry is exploring the use of conforming DAISY/NISO publications in education and other sectors. An ever-growing number of groups that assist people with disabilities are also exploring the use of the reading technology. Additional arenas in which this technology is well-suited include:

• Emergency preparedness
• Language preservation
• Language training
• Museum exhibits
• Radio archives
• Conference proceedings
• Analog audio preservation

The publishing industry is just beginning to investigate multimedia to supplement print offerings, and the DAISY/NISO Standard offers many exciting possibilities in this area.

Open Requirements Gathering Activity

The DAISY Consortium has begun a requirements gathering process to determine if changes to the DAISY/NISO (Z39.86) Specification are necessary to more effectively meet all of these wide and varied user needs. "Users" include individuals who read material in accessible media, producers, publishers, educators, information providers, distributors, archivists, technology developers, and any other groups involved in the use, creation and/or distribution of accessible and/or multimedia content. Input from publishers interested in the DAISY Specification as a potential commercial option is most eagerly welcome.

See the collection of related links for convenient references to the current standard and previous requirements gathering activities that have informed the development of the standard to date.

Given our ongoing commitment to promote and participate in standards harmonization, the Consortium is pleased to open the requirements gathering process to all interested parties. We expect to continue the impressive worldwide adoption of the Standard, with well over 100,000 unique publications available today, by considering the needs of related organizations in the field, such as the:

• Current DAISY Members and Friends
• International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF)
• World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
• International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
• Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS)
• Maintenance Committee for the U.S.-based National Instructional Materials Access Standard (NIMAS)

The Requirements Gathering Process

The Requirements Gathering process will be open from October 31, 2007 through March 31, 2008.

Please use the online submission form that is available from the side navigation bar. The description of each submitted requirement may include details written in day to day terminology, or more formal language and references may be provided by those familiar with relevant specifications. Submitted and reviewed requirements will be available in the "View and Comment" area. You may wish to refer to these reviewed requirements both as examples, as well as to check for possible duplication, prior to submitting a requirement.

You may submit a requirement on behalf of an individual or group of individuals. For example, a teacher may submit a requirement on behalf of one or more students.

The email address field in the submission form will allow us to respond to those making submissions, request clarification as needed, and provide participants with updates during the requirements gathering process. Email addresses will not be used for any other purpose.

Submissions will be reviewed within five working days. Once each requirement has been reviewed, it will be made available for public comment. Comments on requirements should be entered using this "View and Comment" link which is also available on the side navigation bar.

The Consortium is dedicated to making the DAISY Standard the benchmark, demonstrating our philosophy that DAISY is the best way to read and publish content accessible to all. We thank you in advance for your interest in supporting the Standard, and we welcome the opportunity to partner with you as we strive to make the DAISY Standard as flexible, effective, and robust as possible.

Last updated: April 1, 2008.