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                        Call For Participation

                  Next Generation Computer Resources
                               (NGCR)

              Graphics Interface Standards Working Group
                               (GISWG)
                               Workshop
				   
            January 26-28 1993, Hilton Head, South Carolina

            
	The U.S. Navy has embarked on the NGCR program to fulfill the
Navy's need for standard computing resources. The program revolves
around the selection of interface standards in six areas. One of these
areas is graphics interface standards. The graphics interfaces chosen
will be industry-based and provide services to Mission Critical
Computer Resource (MCCR) systems. The graphics interface standards
will be applied to both the development and maintenance of future Navy
systems that include C4I systems, air/surface/subsurface systems and
ground-based support systems.
            
	The NGCR interface standards will be based, to the greatest
extent possible, on existing industry standards. In cases where
existing industry standards do not meet Navy needs, the approach is to
further enhance the existing standards jointly with industry, thus
assuring the most widely-accepted set of commercially based interface
standards possible.

	The effort to establish the Graphics interface standards was
initiated in May 1992 and will draw heavily on industry expertise.
All of the NGCR standardization efforts are accomplished by working
groups with strong industrial, academic and government participation.
The final standard is expected to refer to new and existing graphics
interface standards and be usable in the procurement of Navy systems
in 1998. The initial focus of the GISWG (pronounced "Gis WIG") will be
in establishing scope, identifying requirements, and evaluating
available interface standards.
            
	The Navy has a long history of developing and using standard
computer and products. When computer technology was in its infancy,
the Navy wielded significant influence in the market, setting its own
requirements and developing its own computer designs, including
instruction set architectures (ISAs). Standard computer
implementations (i.e., buying "gray boxes") and upward compatible ISAs
have been the foundation of the Navy's computer policy. This policy
has been motivated by the fact that software can adapt a common
computer design to meet many different applications.
            
	The Navy's current computer standardization approach is having
difficulty remaining competitive in an environment where rapidly
changing technologies permit more efficient and effective solutions to
the range of Navy computing system requirements. The Navy acquisition
and budget process in the past has taken a long time to field new
standard computers and displays, so long that the produced technology
is often old compared to commercial technology. The obvious logistics
benefits associated with standard hardware are offset by the inability
to field current technologies.
            
	The objective of the NGCR program is to restructure the Navy's
approach to acquisition of standard computing resources so as to take
better advantage of commercial advances and investments. It is
expected that this new approach will result in reduced production
costs (through larger quantity buys), reduced operation and
maintenance costs, avoidance of replication of Navy RDT&E costs (for
separate projects to develop similar computing capabilities), and more
effective system integration.
            
	The proposed new approach is an open systems approach based on
the establishment of commercially-based interface standards in six
areas: multisystem interconnects, multiprocessor interconnects,
operating systems, graphics standards, project support environments
and data base management systems.
            
	Application of these interface standards will change the
Navy's approach from one of buying standard computers to one of
procuring commercial computing resources which satisfy the interfaces
defined by the standards. These standards will be applied at the
project level rather than the Navy-wide procurement level.
            
	An integrated (harmonized) set of graphics interface standards
is important in the success of NGCR. The graphics interface standard
will focus on the Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). The scope
is expected to include, windowing systems, toolkits, image processing,
2D and 3D graphics, graphics and image interchange, storage and
retrieval, and User Interface Management Systems. Guidelines for human
computer interaction (human factors) will not be part of the standard,
though they will be an input and have an impact on the requirements.
            
	The GISWG will meet next at the Hilton Resort in Hilton Head,
South Carolina on January 26 - 28 1993. The GISWG has been organized
into three subgroups: Requirements, Available Technology, and
Approach.  The Requirements subgroup will identify present and future
military requirements. The Available Technology Subgroup will collect
and review current and developing graphics standards to provide a
basis to selection a set of baseline interfaces and standards. The
Approach Subgroup will adopt/define a reference model to be utilized
by the other subgroups and provide the planning the GISWG will use to
select the group of graphics interface standards and the eventual
production of the final standard document.
            
	Participation is welcome from all members of the
industry/academic/military communities with interests in graphics
interfaces and standards. For further information contact:
            
CDR Sel Steven Brooks
(703) 602-3966 brooks@nosc.mil
Space & Naval Warfare Systems Command
SPAWAR 231-2
Washington, D.C. 20363-5100
            
Rother V. Hodges
(401) 841-3616 Hodges@Ada.nusc.navy.mil
Naval Undersea Warfare Center
Code 22201 Bldg 1171/3
Newport RI 02841
            
Mary Waugh
(703) 412-7517
Booz, Allen and Hamilton
2711 Jefferson Davis HWY
Arlington, VA 22202