June 2002

Dear Readers,

This month’s focus is on multimodal interaction and how it relates to VoiceXML. In February this year, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) formed a new Multimodal Interaction Working Group. The charter of this group is to extend the user interface of web applications to support multimodal interactions by defining specifications to synchronize multiple modalities and devices. Here at the VoiceXML Forum we are supportive of this effort and believe that building upon VoiceXML is the logical path for multimodal development.

Deborah Dahl authors our first feature article, entitled “W3C Natural Language Semantics Markup”. Deborah’s article provides us with an update on the progress made for far in the new W3C MMI working group, as well as an overview of what to expect in the future. Deborah serves as chair of the MMI working group, and is with Unisys.

T.V. Raman of IBM Research authors our second feature article. This article introduces us to XHTML+Voice, which is a collection of mature WWW technologies such as XHTML, VoiceXML, SSML, SRGS, and XML-Events all integrated via XHTML Modularization to bring multimodal interaction to web applications. The XHTML+Voice specification was formally submitted to the W3C by IBM, Motorola and Opera Software.

In the First Words column this month, Rob Marchand introduces us to the shadowy world of shadow variables in VoiceXML.

Don’t hard code those audio URI’s in your VoiceXML applications! Learn how to do it right, by reading Matt Oshry’s Speak-n-Listen column. Be sure to keep sending Matt your tough VoiceXML questions by emailing , and look for the answers in future issues of the VoiceXML Review.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Engelsma
Editor-in-Chief, VoiceXML Review

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