Introduction to UMarks
UMarks is an open bookmark format intended to replace current proprietary systems used by software – mainly browsers. It has been designed to be easy to read from and write to, and simple to implement. Its purpose is to firstly standardize the format itself, that is, to create an agreed method of storing bookmarks that can be used by any application a user has. Its second purpose is to encourage the idea that bookmarks should be treated as a normal part of a user’s data; something that can follow them around so they can access their bookmarked links whenever they like using a variety of applications and devices.
The format is XML-based, and therefore is nothing more than simple text. It has a set of clearly defined tags that are easy to use and can capture any bookmark collection no matter how complex. Because it uses a very simple structure it is easy for user agents to read from and write to, and should be resistant to corruption. In addition, every element within the format has its own timestamp, allowing for very accurate syncing.
Its main target is of course internet browsers as they each use their own proprietary formats. This commonplace closed approach makes little sense in a world moving towards cloud-based computing and other distributed methods, and ignores the fact that bookmarks belong to a person, not a piece of software. Its intention, as noted, is to challenge the current model and free up a user’s bookmark collection for their own use, whenever they like and using any device they like. As an addendum to this, because of its text-based format it is easy to both compress and encrypt, helping to protect a user’s personal collection of bookmarks, while at the same time making it easily portable: a key aim during the development of UMarks.
It is hoped, then, that the establishment of an agreed universal standard for bookmarks will allow a user’s collection of saved links to be stored centrally on their own computer, as well as a remote backup. In time the remote file can be accessed by anything the user cares to use, whether it’s another browser, a news reader, or their mobile device. Only by agreeing a standard is any of this possible, and UMarks is intended to be the simple, elegant response to the need for a universally agreed way of handling bookmarks.
