Homilies for humble standards

Abstract

At every standards meeting, in clear view on the table there should be a small plaque engraved: “Do it once, do it right, do it internationally.” The many contributions of Douglas Ross exemplify this directive. If, for example, you look at the ASCII standard, ANSI-X3.4-1968, you will find that D.T. Ross represented ACM on the ANSI X3 Committee at that time. This paper is part of an argument that well-founded standards go hand in hand with an effective systems methodology. When first submitted for refereeing, “Homilies for Humble Standards” was oriented toward Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) applications. As it is now published, the context is elevated to consider all applications. In a similar manner, we can broaden the scope to show that it is the concern of all ACM members. Manufacturing is the application of tools and processes on materials to create a product. Languages are our tools; algorithms and procedures are our processes; data is our material. The product is an enhancement of the power and span of control of the customer. I commend this paper for your reading as one of the relatively few in ACM publications which tell why ACM and its members should be “involved”; it discusses an unsolved problem, rather than a solution looking for a problem.