What Topic Maps Do
When XML is introduced into an organization it is usually used for one of two purposes: either to structure the organization's documents or to make that organization's applications talk to other applications. These are both useful ways of using XML, but they will not help anyone find the information they are looking for. What changes with the introduction of XML is that the document processes become more controllable and can be automated to a greater degree than before, while applications can now communicate internally and externally. But the big picture, something that collects the key concepts in the organization's information and ties it all together, is nowhere to be found.
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Topicmaps.Org is an independent consortium of parties interested in developing the applicability of the Topic Maps Paradigm[1] to the World Wide Web, by leveraging the XML family of specifications as required.
This work includes the development of version 1.0 of an XML grammar for interchanging Web-based Topic Maps, called XML Topic Maps (XTM) Version 1.0, written by the Topicmaps.Org Authoring Group. All versions of the XTM Specification will be permanently licensed to the public.