Multimedia in the ODP-RM standard

To coordinate the various standards, we need a framework or architecture that covers many aspects of distributed systems without specifying implementation details. The International Standardization Organization (ISO), realizing the growing importance of standardizing distributed systems, initiated the Open Distributed Processing (ODP) standardization activity in 1987. The ODP reference model (ODP-RM) provides a general framework addressing distributed systems operating in a heterogeneous environment. This article presents ODP-RM and discusses its relevance to multimedia. The standard seeks to enable seamless interfacing of distributed application components despite their heterogeneity. The ODP-RM provides concepts, rules, and languages for building distributed systems. The ODP-RM is based on object orientation, communications, and distributed systems technology. It provides an overall framework for the design of open distributed systems.