September 2004

Dear Readers,

Here in the great Midwest region of the USA, the kids have returned to school, marking the unofficial end of yet another summer. Despite the fact that we’ve had an unseasonably cool summer in this area, I’m glad to report the VoiceXML revolution has been anything but cool over the summer months! And of course, the VoiceXML Forum continues to be a hub of activity as it presses forward with its platform and developer certification programs, and a variety of other programs. The W3C Voice Browser Working Group hasn’t been standing still either, with its publications in July of the Last Call Working Draft of VoiceXML 2.1, a French translation of the VoiceXML 2.0 Recommendation, and a Proposed Recommendation of the SSML specification.

While we’re on the “back to school” topic, the Forum’s EDU committee has recently announced a VoiceXML Education Exchange program, with the intent of encouraging our member companies to make their products and services more accessible to students and faculty in the academic setting. We’re also exploring other ways to reach out to this particular community. If you have ideas or interests in this area, we’d encourage you to get involved in the Forum’s EDU Committee.

In this issue, you won’t want to miss Jim Ferran’s analysis of the VoiceXML Membership Survey conducted by the Forum’s Technical Council last spring. The results of the survey shed interesting light on areas ranging from VoiceXML vs. SALT usage to VoiceXML 3.0 feature wish lists.

In June, the Forum formally announced the launch of its VoiceXML Developer Certification Program. If you haven’t already, be sure to register to take the exam at a test center near you, and join the growing ranks of Certified VoiceXML Developers. If you’d like a little coaching on how to prepare for the exam, or you’re simply wondering why you should take it, be sure to read Jim Larson’s article entitled, “VoiceXML Developer Certification Test Tips”. By the way, Jim is a Certified VoiceXML Developer.

In our regular columns, Rob Marchand begins a series of walk-throughs of the new features offered in VoiceXML 2.1. In the Speak and Listen column, Matt Oshry responds to your questions on ECMAScript.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Engelsma
Editor-in-Chief
VoiceXML Review

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