If you don't think that establishing standards is
          complicated and "a big deal" you're in for a rude shock, I'm
          afraid. For fuzzy, and not all that public-spirited,
          reasons, the establishment of data standards in the world in
          which I work (Natural Science Collections), is a bear. And
          though various standards may be inter-operable, that doesn't
          solve some of the sticky questions that arise in the
          provision of data, whether text or images (witness the
          current GIF hulabaloo) on the NET.
 
          Eric Siegel
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