open standards
Adopting open standards can be advantageous in the areas of:
- accessibility: open standards ensure interoperability between information systems, i.e. the capability of ICT systems to exchange data with one another.
- modifiability: the ability to make changes can be facilitated by the use of standard programming languages such as JAVA and XSL.
- durability: the use of standards improves durability, by making it possible to use different versions of software and operating systems together. This is also helped by the fact that Hippo CMS is platform-independent (JAVA & XML).
- interoperability and re-usability: interoperability and re-usability across different tools, databases and platforms can be made possible by the use of a standard for data exchange such as XML (Extensible Markup Language).
- competitive effect: open standards are generally accepted and widely used by many parties within the industry. Different software systems that work on the basis of open standards are therefore able to work together well. This means that customers are no longer dependent on a single supplier for their entire ICT infrastructure.
If different types of information from a variety of software systems are to be coupled together and presented effectively, it is of crucial importance that open source software is supported by open standards. In the absence of such protocols, nobody knows how information should be provided or what the information supplied or requested actually comprises. The result is then a motley collection of programs that are unable to support each other’s information.
However, if your company uses software that supports open standards, interoperability and exchangeability of data between your database, tools and platforms is possible, and your data can be re-used. You can also exchange information with other organizations that use the same open standards.
To put it briefly, the use of open standards improves the durability of your data by making it possible to exchange information between different versions of software and operating systems.