Government Bills to be in XML Format Now
XML format has been one of the more widely used web standards for now and if you are taking XML training classes, this will be good news for you. The Government Printing Office has announced that it will be publishing its bills in readable XML format. The Federal Digital System bulk data repository will be used as the medium for publishing the XML format bills.
This is not the first time that the government is planning to use XML format publishing for official purposes. Some of the executive branch documents, the Federal Register, and the Code of Federal Regulations are all published in XML format today. Adopting the XML format for the bills seems like an extension of sorts. If you have expertise in XML, you might find that the government offices might have quite a few openings that you can apply for.
Advantages of Using XML for Publishing
XML is short for Extensible Markup Language. This is one of the more favored web documentation languages because it is highly responsive to search queries. That is one of the reasons why advocates of transparency and information sharing encourage the usage of XML, especially for publishing government related documents. Also, if you are using alternative computer programs to extract information from the web, usage of XML will aid those search algorithms also.
However, government agencies don’t seem too keen on using XML for publishing. They seem to prefer more secure publishing formats like the PDF. This is understandable since publishing in PDF will ensure that the publication cannot be altered in any other way.
‘XML Format Publishing Has Numerous Advantages’ – Government Office
According to the official statement released by the office, the decision of using XML format publishing has been made owing to the numerous advantages it offers. The statement said that XML format publishing will allow the data to be repurposed and reused, something that the government is promoting. The statement added that data can now be used by content delivery systems, mobile web applications and also can be converted into the eBook format easily, now that it is being made available in XML.
GPO Has a Five Year Plan
Reliable sources from the GPO added that they have a five year plan that they are currently working on. The plan revolves around making the government content available in a variety of digital formats rather than a single print product.
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