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1) For this to work, there must be a file installed in a particular place on the end-user's hard disk. This can be a DLL or an XML file. For the web, the XML file is far, far easier to deal with. There are some automated provisions within IE for how it can download and install it.
A file of that sort looks like this:
<FL:smarttaglist xmlns:FL="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:smarttags:list">
<FL:name>Medical Condition Terms</FL:name>
<FL:lcid>1033</FL:lcid>
<FL:description>A list of medical conditions for recognition,
as well as a set of actions that work with them.</FL:description>
<FL:moreinfourl>http://www.adatum.com/moreinfo</FL:moreinfourl>
<FL:updateable>true</FL:updateable>
<FL:autoupdate>true</FL:autoupdate>
<FL:lastcheckpoint>100</FL:lastcheckpoint>
<FL:lastupdate>0</FL:lastupdate>
<FL:updateurl>http://www.adatum.com/smarttags/listupdate.xml</FL:updateurl>
<FL:updatefrequency>5</FL:updatefrequency>
<FL:smarttag type="urn:schemas-adatum-com:medical#condition">
<FL:caption>A. Datum Corporation</FL:caption>
<FL:terms>
<FL:termlist>allergy, cough, arthritis, headache, migraine, heartburn,
high blood pressure, digestive disorder, diarrhea, cold, thyrotoxicosis,
thalassemia, bloating, nausea, bronchitis</FL:termlist>
</FL:terms>
<FL:actions>
<FL:action id="CompanyInfo">
<FL:caption>&A. Datum Corporation Company Reports</FL:caption>
<FL:url>http://www.adatum.com</FL:url>
</FL:action>
<FL:action id="CompanyHomePage">
<FL:caption>View A. &Datum Website</FL:caption>
<FL:url>http://www.adatum2.com/home.asp?String={TEXT}</FL:url>
</FL:action>
</FL:actions>
</FL:smarttag>
</FL:smarttaglist>
2) You must add markup to your code telling it that it should use that XML file. You add to your web page additional markup. The markup looks like this:
<html xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
xmlns:st1="urn:schemas-adatum-com:medical">
<head>
<title>Cold</title>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-adatum-com:medical" name="condition"/>
<object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id=ieooui></object>
<style>st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui)}</style>
</head>
<body>
<st1:condition>Cold</st1:condition>
</body>
</html>
This enables the <st1:condition>markup</st1:condition> to make it so the smart tag will appear. The smart tag appears as an (i) icon, that when clicked, produces a menu that is generated by the XML file. From the material given in the SDK, the term list shown in the XML file is not used at all.
This works very different than the same smart tag working inside Word. In Word, if you type any of the words in the term list, it highlights the word and invokes the smart tag, with no additional coding.
Now none of this precludes Microsoft from doing something different. Maybe the demos that Microsoft was showing reporters had some additional piece of functionality than what is in the SDK. It wouldn't take much for them to change things to what everyone fears. However, at the moment, given what is in the SDK, there is nothing to worry about.
The WSJ article talks about the additional insidious functionality being in Windows XP, in an internal beta, not released to the public. So it well could be that Microsoft could add this functionality to the final Windows XP. But at the moment, it doesn't work that way.
Smart tags currently work only if you have IE 6.0 and Office XP both installed on your machine.
(edited by: Xoc on 6:39 am (gmt) on June 12, 2001
I know how this technology works and the fact it is enabled in MSIE6 as a permanent feature is worry enough. What you have referred to is no different than a custom built Booster Pack at flyswat. This is the opt in feature Microsoft has been selling everyone on. What you don't know is that the browser has it's own "Booster Packs" already built in. And hence the worry.
Go to flyswat.com and give it a try (it's the same thing, xml and all). Make it easy on yourself- load the interface only without the Booster Packs. Get a taste of the future...
Developer Info:
[msdn.microsoft.com...]
[msofficeconference.com...]
Developing DLL's [msdn.microsoft.com]
[xml.coverpages.org...]
[aolca.cnet.com...]
Xoc: There are some automated provisions within IE for how it can download and install it.
That's one place where I get foggy. Greg, did you get how the XML file or DLL file gets installed on the end-user's machine?
Also, I noticed this in the Microsoft write up on [msdn.microsoft.com...] after they described custom development:
...Internet Explorer (when Office XP is installed on your computer) extend[s] this functionality to associate information such as names, dates, addresses, phone numbers, places, and stock symbols, without any custom development.
"Without any custom development". So, it sounds like this level of functionality (names, dates, addresses, phone numbers, places and stock symbols) is already there, just with a basic install. Or would an author still need to include <address></address> tags in the document to activate it?
2) As it currently exists in code you can see, to get any Smart Tag features on your web pages, you must add markup to your code. It does not happen automatically. So all you have to disable it is not add markup code to your web pages. To have this work, you will need IE 6.0 and Microsoft Office XP installed.
3) There are a couple of Smart Tag sets that are installed by Office XP. So if you want, you can take advantage of them, by putting the proper markup into your code.
4) To set up to download a DLL or XML file, you have to create an ActiveX control that downloads and runs the Microsoft Installer. Or have them click and run the installer from a web page. There is one attribute on the o:SmartTagType element that tells it where to go to get new XML or DLL files. I am unclear at the moment if you can get to this if you don't already have at least one copy of the XML file installed. I'll check later. But in any case this will only find the install point for you; you still would have to accept the ActiveX control or run a program to install it. (Of course, you could pay Microsoft to ship the XML file with Windows XP!)
5) The XML file controls what appears on the menu. So if you can get the XML file onto the end user's system, and there is the correct markup within your web pages, you can display whatever you want on the menu. If you can convince others to use exactly the same markup, you can appear on their menus!
see [simplythebest.net...]
I installed a IE based browser (neocaptor) that also installed flyswat - it took a spyware removal program to remove all the components (just uninstalling it isnt enough) and explorer/internet explorer now crashes fairly regularly, which I strongly suspect is a side effect of the software.
I was thinking about this. It would be possible to circumvent the possess by not giving it any food. You could deliver PDF, flash or graphic content to MSIE 6.0 users. There are perl modules that will convert html into flash and PDFs
Actually, I'm not worried anymore so this will be my last post on the subject ;)
Yes, it is possible to have two sets of smart tag installed that have the same set of keywords. As it is implemented, it doesn't matter, since you have to mark up which set of smart tags you want to use. However, if the speculated way that smart tag will work is used, it will become important, and will probably work the same as it currently does in Word or Excel.
The documentation says that if exactly the same term is in both sets of tags, the user will be given a cascading menu to pick from. On the other hand, it is possible to have an overlapping set of tags. I.e. One set of smart tags has the term "html development" whereas the other has just "html", then only one set of smart tags will be given and which one is artibrarily chosen.
I believe that what they mean is that whichever set of smart tags comes first in their internal data structures will be the one that is used, and to lay out those rules would be too cumbersome to document and subject to change.
<meta name="MSSmartTagsPreventParsing" content="TRUE">
Anyone know of an authoritative source for that info? I've seen it repeated in 2-3 sites now and am trying to verify it.
It's worth having a look at what Dan Gillmor's [web.siliconvalley.com] up to in questioning Microsoft's intentions. Dave Winer's [scripting.com] comment:
"Dan, there's no question that this is wrong. You can't "disable their use" because the user can tell the software to ignore the meta tag. (Which I have put in Scripting News, view source to see how it works.) Even so, it's a huge cost to update all our sites to include the meta tag. Should we send the bill for this needless work to Microsoft? They have lots of money, I hear."
...is ambiguous but appealing :-).
However, his latest remarks (and links to Victor Stone and Michael Fraase) are of more import and, with reference to the AOL war, alerts us to staying awake.
Winer also points to Matthias Gutfeldt's Smart Tag FAQ [allmyfaqs.com] which lists most of Microsoft's guff on them.
Redmond's blatant attempt to palm these litle devils off as harmless should serve as a warning against complacency in watching .Net development. UDDI [uddi.org] looks as though it will also generate some heat.
>Anyone know of an authoritative source for that info?
It is part of the IE6 FAQ [groups.google.com] at the microsoft.public.windows.inetexplorer.ie6beta.browser newsgroup.
