'XDocs' Turns Information Into Knowledge by Connecting XML Web Services
To the Desktop
ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Today at Gartner Inc.'s
Symposium/ITxpo 2002, Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT),
will announce plans to deliver in mid-2003 the newest Microsoft(R) Office
family application, code-named "XDocs." "XDocs" streamlines the process of
gathering information by enabling teams and organizations to easily create and
work with rich, dynamic forms. The information collected can be integrated
with a broad range of business processes because "XDocs" supports any
customer-defined Extensible Markup Language (XML) schema and integrates with
XML Web services. As a result, "XDocs" helps to connect information workers
directly to organizational information, giving them the ability to act on it,
which leads to greater business impact.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000822/MSFTLOGO )
"The vision for 'XDocs' is to deliver on the needs of our customers by
connecting XML Web services to information workers at their desktops," Ballmer
said. "'XDocs' provides new ways to gather and reuse company data, enabling
better information flow, more informed decisions and greater integration of
people with business processes throughout an organization."
Turning Information Into Knowledge
Today's organizations are often forced to rely on inefficient, error-prone
ways to gather data -- information that can be difficult to share or reuse in
the organization's business processes. "XDocs" allows customers to create
flexible, dynamic forms that capture the information they need in a timely
manner. Using the validation capabilities in "XDocs," customers can ensure
that data being gathered meets business criteria and that information is more
accurate. And because "XDocs" supports any customer-defined XML schema,
organizations can define exactly how the information they collect is
structured.
"The XML community has waited a long time for a product to bring the power
of Extensible Markup Language to the mass market," said Charles F. Goldfarb,
inventor of markup language technology and author of "The XML Handbook(TM)."
"With 'XDocs,' information workers can now directly interface with enterprise
resources and XML Web services. That offers limitless possibilities to improve
the way people do business."
"XDocs"' support for XML allows customers to integrate information
directly into their existing line-of-business processes, ranging from customer
relationship management, enterprise resource planning and supply chain
management to workgroup-level processes such as project status and team
reports. By making it easier to collect and share information, "XDocs" enables
teams and organizations to make better-informed decisions.
Increasing Efficiency and Productivity
By helping businesses capture and reuse their data more readily, Microsoft
is addressing a key challenge that they face today: how to use information to
enhance efficiency and productivity across the enterprise.
"We are excited about the introduction of 'XDocs,'" said Art Huggard,
director of digital strategy at Solutia Inc. "Participation in the alpha
program really let us see its potential. We are exploring the impact on many
internal processes, from custom purchase order solutions to clinical-trial
data submission. The validation capability within 'XDocs' enables us to check
our data against criteria that we have set, improving the accuracy of data
entry. And because the data collected by 'XDocs' is XML, we can send it
directly to our clinical systems, actually eliminating a step in our clinical
trials process. We anticipate that 'XDocs' will not only speed up the flow of
information, but also reduce errors, saving everyone a significant amount of
time and money."
The introduction of "XDocs" and Office's continued investment in XML
demonstrates Microsoft's commitment to innovation and to helping customers
leverage information for greater impact.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft is the worldwide leader in software, services
and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company
offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people
through great software -- any time, any place and on any device.
NOTE: Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corp. in the
United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the
trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE Microsoft Corp.
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