XAPIA INTRODUCES NEW API FOR CALENDARING AND SCHEDULING APPLICATIONS

Furthers Industry Effort to Integrate Calendars into Desktop Applications

SAN FRANCISCO, November 14, 1994 -- The X.400 Application Program Interface
Association (XAPIA) today introduced a new application program interface
(API) that allows calendaring and scheduling capabilities to be integrated
into desktop applications such as project management, workflow, and
electronic forms.

The API is the first step in the organization's effort to provide
technology that will enable dissimilar group calendar applications to
share schedule information. Interoperability specifications will be
delivered late in 1994, according to Frank Dawson, IBM Software Solutions,
who chairs the XAPIA technical committee on calendaring and scheduling.

XAPIA is an open, non-profit association formed in 1989 to promote the
availability of specifications for electronic messaging applications
development. Leading vendors of calendaring and scheduling products
participated in the effort, which was joined by X/Open and COSE, who
contributed technology to the effort. XAPIA is making the new API
available without charge to the industry. It is posted on the CompuServe
GENCOM forum.

The Calendaring and Scheduling API (CSA) supports applications regardless
of their architecture: message-based, client/server, or remote procedure
call. In addition, CSA is platform independent, supporting Windows, OS/2,
and UNIX platforms in a desktop environment (personal information
managers), in a LAN-based group scheduler, and across an enterprise as
part of wide-area network application services.

The CSA allows programmers to build calendaring and scheduling capabilities
into applications without requiring special expertise. An application
written to CSA can make use of these capabilities independent of the
underlying vendor product. Developers of calendar-enabled applications
expect that CSA and the forthcoming interoperability specification will
accelerate market growth for their products.

Anik Ganguly, executive vice president of Campbell Services, said, "Our
customers have been asking for a calendaring API. They see their
calendaring and group scheduling product as the natural platform for such
other functions as time billing, project management, and workflow. Our
participation in the XAPIA CSA effort was the first step in meeting our
customers' needs. Our implementation of this API for OnTime will enable us
to fulfill our commitment to our customers. The CSA should accelerate the
growth of this market." OnTime is Campbell Services' calendaring and group
scheduling product.

Organizations who use these products can expect speedier availability of a
new class of desktop and enterprise applications that incorporate
information stored in calendars and schedules into such products as
project managers, workflow managers, and cost billback programs. These
applications will be able to retrieve calendar information from a mix of
products and a mix of platforms.

Darby Johnson, senior analyst at International Data Corp. said, "The
calendaring and scheduling function is a significant element of the
collaborative process, and the availability of an API for this function
will enhance a workgroup's efforts as it increases the level of
interoperability available among different calendaring applications."

"In its emphasis on cross-platform and multiple-transport access, CSA shows
its heritage as an XAPIA effort. Like the Common Messaging Calls APIs
before it, CSA is designed to ensure that products from different vendors
can interoperate," said Ed Owens, XAPIA chairman.

Conceptual Model

CSA takes its model for calendar and schedule functions from familiar
datebooks and their uses. In the model, calendars belong to a person,
group, or resource, and contain entries. Entries can be events, or to-do
items, or memos. A calendar entry can have characteristic attributes
marked, as well. These might indicate priority, status, attendees, or
meeting start time-just as you would mark up a datebook page where you've
entered a reminder for a meeting.

Broad Industry Support

Effort to develop CSA was initiated at a birds-of-a-feather session at the
Electronic Messaging Association conference in June 1993. Attendees
identified common problems and suggested that XAPIA study the issue. To
gather information and support, XAPIA sponsored a Calendaring and
Scheduling Summit in August, which attracted nearly 50 attendees
representing more than 30 companies. The technical committee formed and
within a year had produced a specification approved by XAPIA members.

Additional support for CSA has come from other industry coalitions and
standards bodies. X/Open plans to fast-track for an X/Open standard.
Previous collaborations between XAPIA and X/Open have led to work accepted
by international standards bodies. The MHS Alliance Calendaring Project
committed to align its early work with XAPIA work. COSE/CDE Calendar
Manager API participated with XAPIA in the definition of CSA. Also
referenced by XAPIA were the ISO Calendar Standard and the Internet draft
Chronos specification.

XAPIA member companies are American Express, NetManage, Attachmate Canada,
Boeing Computer Services, BULL HN Information Systems, Campbell Services,
CE Software, Digital Equipment Corp., France Telecom, Hewlett Packard,
Hitachi, Hughes Aircraft, IBM, Infonet Software Solutions, LinkAge
Software Inc., Lotus Development Corp., Microsoft Corp., Microsystems
Software, Novell, ON Technology, Oracle, RAM Mobile Data, Retix, Tandem
Computers, Wingra, Worldtalk, and XcelleNet.

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