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SiSU
Encyclopedia
SiSU is a Unix
command line-oriented framework for document structuring, publishing and search.
applied to a document, or a collection of documents, SiSU can produce plain text
, HTML
, XHTML
, EPUB
, XML
, OpenDocument
, LaTeX
or PDF
files, and populate an SQL
database.
Document structuring
SiSU offers its user a way to structure plain text and to add graphics, hyperlinks, endnotes, footnotes etc. with simple text editing programs such as Notepad (Windows), TextEdit (Mac) or Gedit (GNU/Linux). The markup language is mnemonic and human readable.
To process the marked up document(s) with SiSU, the user issues a command via the command-line
of the computer terminal. The output can be generated in multiple formats (html, pdf, epub, and others) with one single command.
Publishing and self-publishing
A document, or a collection of documents, which has been processed by SiSU is technically ready to be published on the web, or printed on paper. Canadian author Cory Doctorow
, for instance, has used SiSU as a publishing tool and blogged about it. In a newspaper article, Doctorow called SiSU an "automated ebook workflow tool".
Earlier examples of webpublishing with SiSU are Projet de traité instituant l'Union Européenne / Draft Treaty Establishing the European Union and the novel Tainaron
by Finnish author Leena Krohn
.
Search
SiSU can populate an SQL
database with objects(equating generally to paragraph-sized chunks) so searches may be performed and matches returned with that degree of granularity (e.g. your search criteria are met by these documents and at these locations within each document). Document output formats share a common object numbering system for locating content. This is particularly suitable for "published" works (finalized texts as opposed to works that are frequently changed or updated) for which it provides a fixed means of reference of content.
since 2000. It was released under the GPL in January 2005. SiSU developed out of work done on a project started earlier on documents related to (primarily private) international commercial law and international trade law started in 1993 on a site known then as Ananse, and more recently as LexMercatoria
SiSU version 1 was released December 2009. SiSU version 2 was released March 2010. Version 2 features a new processing engine. Markup remains substantially identical between versions, apart from changes to the markup for document headers (which contain document metadata and processing instructions). Both version 1 and 2 text processing engines are available in the version 2 tarball. Development takes place on the version 2 branch. Version 1 is available to guarantee compatibility with older prepared texts (prior to the updating of document headers), and as an earlier reference implementation.
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
command line-oriented framework for document structuring, publishing and search.
Usage
Using markupMarkup language
A markup language is a modern system for annotating a text in a way that is syntactically distinguishable from that text. The idea and terminology evolved from the "marking up" of manuscripts, i.e. the revision instructions by editors, traditionally written with a blue pencil on authors' manuscripts...
applied to a document, or a collection of documents, SiSU can produce plain text
Plain text
In computing, plain text is the contents of an ordinary sequential file readable as textual material without much processing, usually opposed to formatted text....
, HTML
HTML
HyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
, XHTML
XHTML
XHTML is a family of XML markup languages that mirror or extend versions of the widely-used Hypertext Markup Language , the language in which web pages are written....
, EPUB
EPUB
EPUB is a free and open e-book standard by the International Digital Publishing Forum...
, XML
XML
Extensible Markup Language is a set of rules for encoding documents in machine-readable form. It is defined in the XML 1.0 Specification produced by the W3C, and several other related specifications, all gratis open standards....
, OpenDocument
OpenDocument
The Open Document Format for Office Applications is an XML-based file format for representing electronic documents such as spreadsheets, charts, presentations and word processing documents....
, LaTeX
LaTeX
LaTeX is a document markup language and document preparation system for the TeX typesetting program. Within the typesetting system, its name is styled as . The term LaTeX refers only to the language in which documents are written, not to the editor used to write those documents. In order to...
or PDF
Portable Document Format
Portable Document Format is an open standard for document exchange. This file format, created by Adobe Systems in 1993, is used for representing documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems....
files, and populate an SQL
SQL
SQL is a programming language designed for managing data in relational database management systems ....
database.
Document structuring
SiSU offers its user a way to structure plain text and to add graphics, hyperlinks, endnotes, footnotes etc. with simple text editing programs such as Notepad (Windows), TextEdit (Mac) or Gedit (GNU/Linux). The markup language is mnemonic and human readable.
To process the marked up document(s) with SiSU, the user issues a command via the command-line
Command-line interface
A command-line interface is a mechanism for interacting with a computer operating system or software by typing commands to perform specific tasks...
of the computer terminal. The output can be generated in multiple formats (html, pdf, epub, and others) with one single command.
Publishing and self-publishing
A document, or a collection of documents, which has been processed by SiSU is technically ready to be published on the web, or printed on paper. Canadian author Cory Doctorow
Cory Doctorow
Cory Efram Doctorow is a Canadian-British blogger, journalist, and science fiction author who serves as co-editor of the blog Boing Boing. He is an activist in favour of liberalising copyright laws and a proponent of the Creative Commons organization, using some of their licences for his books...
, for instance, has used SiSU as a publishing tool and blogged about it. In a newspaper article, Doctorow called SiSU an "automated ebook workflow tool".
Earlier examples of webpublishing with SiSU are Projet de traité instituant l'Union Européenne / Draft Treaty Establishing the European Union and the novel Tainaron
Tainaron (novel)
Tainaron: Mail From Another City is a science fiction/fantasy novel written in 1985 by Finnish author Leena Krohn. The book is regarded as the author's breakthrough novel...
by Finnish author Leena Krohn
Leena Krohn
Leena Krohn is a Finnish author. Her large and varied body of work includes novels, short stories, children's books, and essays...
.
Search
SiSU can populate an SQL
SQL
SQL is a programming language designed for managing data in relational database management systems ....
database with objects(equating generally to paragraph-sized chunks) so searches may be performed and matches returned with that degree of granularity (e.g. your search criteria are met by these documents and at these locations within each document). Document output formats share a common object numbering system for locating content. This is particularly suitable for "published" works (finalized texts as opposed to works that are frequently changed or updated) for which it provides a fixed means of reference of content.
History
SiSU has been under development since 1997, and written in RubyRuby (programming language)
Ruby is a dynamic, reflective, general-purpose object-oriented programming language that combines syntax inspired by Perl with Smalltalk-like features. Ruby originated in Japan during the mid-1990s and was first developed and designed by Yukihiro "Matz" Matsumoto...
since 2000. It was released under the GPL in January 2005. SiSU developed out of work done on a project started earlier on documents related to (primarily private) international commercial law and international trade law started in 1993 on a site known then as Ananse, and more recently as LexMercatoria
SiSU version 1 was released December 2009. SiSU version 2 was released March 2010. Version 2 features a new processing engine. Markup remains substantially identical between versions, apart from changes to the markup for document headers (which contain document metadata and processing instructions). Both version 1 and 2 text processing engines are available in the version 2 tarball. Development takes place on the version 2 branch. Version 1 is available to guarantee compatibility with older prepared texts (prior to the updating of document headers), and as an earlier reference implementation.
External links
- SiSU homepage