Ancient Egyptian Technology
Hieroglyphs, Hieratic, Transliteration
Unicode, EGPZ, XML

INSX File Format

Preliminary information, subject to change.

Introduction

The INSX file format is used by InScribe 2008 for its default storage for hieroglyphic texts. A simple XML-based plain text format, INSX is intended to be open to use by other software that works with Ancient Egyptian. The long name (seen for example in Windows Explorer after InScribe 2008 is installed) is "InScribe Hieroglyphs".

Background

The original InScribe file format was introduced in 1993 as an application-specific compact binary format. This approach was commonplace at the time. Some modifications to the format were made with InScribe 2004, largely to bring it into line with various Manuel de Codage (MdC) dialects. Over the last few years XML has grown to be the preferred standard for document file formats and a dramatic increase in computer performance makes the overhead of processing and storing XML-based documents insignificant compared to the situation 15 years ago. There have also been developments in Unicode with Coptic available for some time, Egyptian Transliteration available in Unicode 5.1 (April 2008) and Basic Egyptian Hieroglyphs expected in Unicode 5.2 (release probably about 18 months or so after Unicode 5.1).

The first (unpublished) drafts of INSX were written in 2006. The basic principles were to (i) support standard MdC functionality, (ii) allow full support for InScribe 2004 features, (iii) use standard XML patterns where applicable, (iv) add richer mixed text support, and (v) keep as simple as possible. Simplicity is an important feature. It would be possible to design an XML format around an existing standard such as the Open Document Format (ODF, ISO/IEC 26300:2006) and/or use some of the variety of other formal XML standards. However this would take us a long way from the conceptual simplicity of an MdC level of approach and make useful applications of INSX unnecessarily complex. At the same time as drafting INSX in 2006, the author was testing out a more elaborate scheme but this seemed to confirm that the issues outweighed the benefits for practical applications at that time.

From the beginning, INSX used the (unofficial but stable) EGPZ standard for encoding hieroglyphs in the Unicode Private Use areas. Support was also provided for a formal Unicode standard as and when available. This dual system was never ideal but nevertheless essential given the status of the formal standard. By early 2008, an advanced pre-release of InScribe 2008 that implemented INSX plus the availability of sample data such as the EGPZ Word List allowed for testing INSX against a variety of application scenarios including recent developments of web technologies as well as the traditional application requirements.

As a consequence of this review, there were changes in three significant areas. Firstly, with the progress of Egyptian Hieroglyphs in ISO/IEC/Unicode standards since 2006 it seemed desirable and possible to eliminate some of the complexity associated with the original EGPZ/formal Unicode/MdC approach. Secondly, it was highly desirable to extend further some of the features to allow INSX and INSX applications to work with additions to hieroglyph support beyond EGPZ 1.0 and the expected content of Unicode 5.2. Finally, additions to the document structure to better support layout of mixed text and hieroglyphs in columns. These changes have been evaluated in prototype and work started on incorporation in InScribe 2008 preview software. Technical details are to be published here on www.egpz.com during April 2008 to enable feedback from interested parties.

Description

In preparation:
  1. INSX Document Structure
  2. INSX concepts and applications
  3. INSX support for Egyptian Hieroglyphs
  4. INSX compatibility with MdC

Additional notes relating to InScribe 2008 to be added to InScribe 2008 materials.

Specifications

More formal specifications and XML schema to be given here when completed. Meanwhile, please contact the author if you are interested from a development perspective.

Examples

Examples and are being prepared as part of the InScribe 2008 Beta Program with the intention that examples for non-InScribe users and developers will be added here when available.

Bob Richmond

March 2008

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