Disclaimer: The InterNet provides easy access to information provided by many parties. In particular, this document contains many links to information provided by others. The intent of this document is to make as much as possible M[UMPS] related information available. The maintainer of this document wishes to recognize all authors and maintainers of other hyperlinked documents for their willingness to share information, but cannot accept responsibility for information provided by others.
User's Groups and Associations
Taskgroups
Subcommittees
Standards Interpretations Review Board
Membership
Meetings
MDC Type A Extensions
Document Register
The M Technology Association was accredited by ANSI as a Standards Development Organization that produces voluntary standards related to the use of the programming language M[UMPS]. When the M Technology Association ceased to exist (as per 1 January 2002), this accreditation elapsed, as well as all existing ANSI standards (the ISO standards were not affected by the demise of the M Technology Association).
MUMPS is an acronym for Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi Programming System.
In current-day usage, both MUMPS and M are used to designate the language. This document does not intend to promote either choice and will use the notation M[UMPS], for the benefit of text-scanning operations.
Some of the most frequently asked questions about M[UMPS], are answered
in the FAQ.
Please keep in mind that in this FAQ, many authors express their
(sometimes opposing) opinions. The MDC is pleased to offer the various
authors this platform to share their views, but does not necessarily
endorse all opinions expressed in this FAQ document.
More information about M[UMPS] can be obtained from the various User's Groups and Associations.
Chair | Arthur B. Smith, | |
E-mail: | art@vets.vetmed.missouri.edu | |
Vice Chair | Rick Marshall | |
E-mail: | toad@isc-sf.va.gov | |
Secretary | Ed J.P.M. de Moel c/o Jacquard Systems Research 57 Magnolia Street Arlington, Massachusetts 02474 | |
E-mail: | demoel@jacquardsystems.com |
1: Language Syntax (Dissolved: October 1991)
2: Implementation and Validation (Dissolved: October 1991)
3: Documentation
(Renamed to Information Systems Processes: October 1989,
Dissolved: October 1991)
4: Liaison (Established: June 1987, Dissolved: October 1991)
5: Security (Established: January 1988,
Dissolved: October 1991)
6: Logic Programming (Established: June 1988,
Dissolved: October 1991)
7: Communications and Networking (Established: June 1988,
Dissolved: October 1991)
8: Library (Established: November 1988,
Dissolved: October 1991)
9: Bindings (Established: November 1988,
Dissolved: October 1991)
10: Namespace
Established: February 1989,
Renamed: June 1990 (to Environment),
Dissolved: October 1991)
11: User Interface
Established: October 1991,
Dissolved: October 1995 (by merging with Subcommittee 12)
12: Environment
13: Data Management and Manipulation
14: Networking
Established: October 1991,
Dissolved: September 1996 (by merging with Subcommittee 12)
15: Programming Structures
16: Object Oriented Language
Valerie Harvey (MTA, until June 1997)
Gail Penrod (MTA, until June 1997)
Joop Duisterhout (MTA, until June 1998)
Ed de Moel (MDC, until January 2001)
Wally Fort (MDC, until January 2002)
List of members
At the last meeting of the MDC, in September 1999,
15 of the 29 members were present.
Since then, only 7 organizations have expressed an interest
in continuing their membership.
The following products are available for download (as far as the keeper of this web-site knows: without charge):
The following section is an on-line copy of the book: The Annotated M[UMPS] Standards, which includes all of the M[UMPS] related standards and the earlier book called M[UMPS] by Example.
Printed copies of the book are no longer available. Look at the website of Jacquard Systems Research for information on how to order CD-ROM copies of the book.
The book contains the following sections:
Abbreviations:
ANSI: American National Standards Institute
FIPS: Federal Information Processing Standard
GKS: Graphical Kernel System
IEC: International Electronic Council
ISO: International Standards Organization
JIS: Japanese Industry Standard
MDC: MUMPS Development Committee
NSC: National Standard of Canada
Date | Number | Standard |
15 September 1977 | ANSI/MDC X11.1-1977 | original ANSI Standard for Language Specification |
15 November 1984 | ANSI/MDC X11.1-1984 | revised ANSI Standard for Language Specification |
... 1986 | FIPS-125 | FIPS for Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1984) |
5 April 1990 | ANSI/MDC X11.1-1990 | revised ANSI Standard for Language Specification |
... 1992 | ISO/IEC 11756:1992 | original ISO Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1990) |
15 May 1993 | BS ISO/IEC 11756:1992 | original British National Standard for Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1990) |
10 June 1993 | FIPS-125.1 | revised FIPS for Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1990) |
14 November 1994 | ANSI/MDC X11.3-1994 | original ANSI Standard for M[UMPS] - GKS Binding |
12 June 1995 | ANSI/MDC X11.4-1995 | original ANSI Standard for M[UMPS] - X Window Binding |
27 October 1995 | ANSI/MDC X11.6-1994 | original ANSI Standard for M[UMPS] Windowing Application Programmer's Interface |
8 December 1995 | ANSI/MDC X11.1-1995 | revised ANSI Standard for Language Specification |
11 December 1995 | ANSI/MDC X11.2-1995 | original ANSI Standard for Open M[UMPS] Interconnect |
13 April 1995 | JIS X3011-1995 | original Japanese National Standard for Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1990) |
... 1995 | NSC 11756-1995 | original Canadian National Standard for Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1990) |
21 April 1998 | ISO/IEC 11756:1999 | renewed ISO Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1995) |
21 April 1998 | ISO/IEC 15851:1999 | original ISO Open MUMPS Interconnect Specification (identical to ANSI X11.2-1995) |
21 April 1998 | ISO/IEC 15852:1999 | original ISO MUMPS Windowing Application Programmer Interface Specification (identical to ANSI X11.6-1994) |
1 January 2002 | ANSI X11.1-1995 ANSI X11.2-1995 ANSI X11.3-1994 ANSI X11.4-1995 ANSI X11.6-1994 | M Technology Association ceases to exist. ANSI Standards administratively withdrawn. |
6 January 2005 | ISO/IEC 11756:1999 | re-affirmed ISO Language Specification (identical to ANSI X11.1-1995) |
6 January 2005 | ISO/IEC 15851:1999 | re-affirmed ISO Open MUMPS Interconnect Specification (identical to ANSI X11.2-1995) |
6 January 2005 | ISO/IEC 15852:1999 | re-affirmed ISO MUMPS Windowing Application Programmer Interface Specification (identical to ANSI X11.6-1994) |
42 | Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect |
43 | MSM - Micronetics Standard MUMPS, vendor InterSystems Corporation |
44 | CCSM - Comp Computing Standard MUMPS, vendor MGlobal International Incorporated |
  | MacMUMPS, vendor MGlobal International Incorporated |
  | MGM - M Global MUMPS, vendor MGlobal International Incorporated |
45 | Unix MUMPS, vendor PFCS Corporation (formerly known as Plus Five Computer Services) |
46 | M/SQL,
vendor InterSystems Corporation renamed to Open/M, then Caché, then IRIS Data Platform, formerly known as ISM (InterSystems Standard MUMPS) |
  | DSM - Digital Equipment Standard MUMPS, vendor InterSystems Corporation |
  | DTM - DataTree MUMPS, vendor InterSystems Corporation |
47 | GTM - Greystone Technology MUMPS, vendor Greystone Technology Corporation |
M21 - the e-dbms for the 21st century, vendor M21 Ltd. | |
50 | RSM - Reference Standard M, vendor Fourth Watch Software LC; resources: rsm and mumpsv1 |
-- | Visual Tech, vendor X-Tension Software Corporation |
-- | Advanced MUMPS 6000, vendor Advanced MUMPS Systems |
-- | CCSM-2, vendor System Giken Co. Incorporated |
-- | CP/M MicroMUMPS, public domain, distributor Robert Morris College |
-- | GNOSIS (see NOUS) |
-- | IPSUM M68K, vendor IPSUM Computadores |
-- | LEMIX, vendor Leme Informatica Ltda. |
-- | Medidata MUMPS, vendor Medidata Informatica SA |
-- | Merle/MUMPS, Kevin C. O'Kane, Computer Science Department, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 50614, e-mail, Home Page |
-- | MP-7 MUMPS, vendor Pensamento Processamento de Dados Ltda. |
-- | MPC/X, vendor Pensamento Processamento de Dados Ltda. |
-- | MUMPS Pensamento, vendor Pensamento Processamento de Dados Ltda. |
-- | NOUS (in Japan known as GNOSIS) vendor MUMPS System Laboratories |
48 | PSM-11, PSM-32, PSM-V, vendor Patterson, Gray & Associates |
49 | FreeM, vendor Coherent Logic Development LLC |
-- | Pyramid Symmetric MUMPS, vendor Pyramid Technology Corporation |
-- | SP-MUMPS, vendor Sumimoto Electric Industries Limited |
-- | Super MUMPS, vendor Extensao Informatica e Tecnologia |
-- | U-MUMPS, vendor Sumimoto Electric Industries Limited |
-- | UCD MicroMUMPS, public domain, distributor D-M Information Systems |
-- | VISOS, vendor Viso Data Computer GMBH |
Whatever the name, it should not be surprising that other people will use the same name for their products and activities.
The trademark that MGH once held, seems to have lapsed, and anybody should be free to use the name "mumps" for a product or service, until someone else trademarks it.
The word "mumps", of course, is most known as the name of a
child-hood disease.
Webster's dictionary informs us that
the verb "to mump" may be used to indicate that somebody "mumps",
i.e. to indicate that that person talks unintelligibly,
or is chattering rapidly like an ape,
or is chewing with short quick nibbles,
or is cheating,
or is imposing upon someone.
From the same source, we find that the noun "mump", which means lump or excrescence can take the plural form "mumps".
So far, I have run into one other industrial use of "mumps". If anyone knows of any other fellow-mumpsters, please let me know, and I'll add them to the list:
The Love Song of J. Random Hacker, 1995
How do others reference M[UMPS]?