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MusicXML DTD Hits 1.0; Browser Support Next?
base_chakra writes "Two years since its initial release, the MusicXML music notation document type has finally reached v1.0. MusicXML is an (you guessed it) XML-based musical score format developed by Recordare LLC, and derived from the MuseData and Humdrum projects. Although MusicXML was quickly adopted by virtually every major music notation software products available, a standard non-binary format for rendering music notation on the web is something that's still sorely needed. Despite its unfortunate limitations, will MusicXML eventually become the de facto means of rendering music notation online, or will it fall into obscurity like so many document types?"
We still can't get good SVG support in a browser (unless you have IE on window/mac and Adobe's plugin installed). I can't imagine supporting MusicXML in the browser before SVG... besides, once SVG is supported, XSLT should be able to transform MusicXML to SVG, SVG Print, or PDF.
Examples of widespread file formats:
I'm sorry to say, but marketing seems to have a much more profound effect on the spread of a file format than its openness and freedom.
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From the AC:
HTML I'll give you as a well-supported open standard file format. PDF, not as much, but better supported than the MS formats.
I suppose for balance, supported documented file formats would include:
And, for further comparison, well documented open formats that somehow just don't seem to be as widespread as you might hope:
A blanket statement really can't cover all the possibilities. It just seems that despite the advantages to open formats, the market just doesn't seem to care right now.
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How is their standard not free? (I don't mean their particular application; I don't care one way or the other about that.) I didn't see any particular gotchas in the license; they say they want it to catch on as widely as possible, that they want as many applications to use it as possible and that they don't care if you want to make your application open source. The only possible thing I can think of is a hidden patent, but using XML to represent discrete events (notes) would seem kind of obvious, no? There must be tons of prior art.
Or is there some kind of zealots' vendetta going on, of which I was not previously aware?
"'I pass the test,' she said. 'I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Galadriel.'"
- JRR Tolkien.