1. Open Source Solutions in XBRL
Hello, I’m Javi Mora, XBRL Spain manager, and I’ll show you this presentation about the Open Source Solutions in XBRL
Javi Mora
XBRL Spain
Manager
XI European Banking Supervisors XBRL Workshop, Vienna, AUSTRIA. November 16-20, 2009

2. Discussion Points Open Source role in XBRL reporting data flow
Open source XBRL tools state of art
Real Case: Integrating open source XBRL processors
The first item of the presentation is the “Open Source role in XBRL reporting data flow”.

3. Open Source role in XBRL reporting data flow
XBRL offers major benefits at all stages of the information supply chain where XBRL-tagged data can be reused and shared
The benefits are seen in automation; cost savings; faster, more reliable and more accurate handling of data; improved analysis; and better quality of information for decision-making
As you will know…
XBRL offers major benefits at all stages of the information supply chain where XBRL-tagged data can be reused and shared
And, also, it is very important …
The benefits are seen in automation; cost savings; faster, more reliable and more accurate handling of data; improved analysis; and better quality of information for decision-making
From

4. Open Source role in XBRL reporting data flow
As XBRL is a DIGITAL STANDARD, in this data flow, we can see the advantages and disadvantages of DIGITAL and STANDARD, and also the relationship between them.
The open source can help in order to decrease some disadvantages, like the initial investment on new software, and contribute to the fast adoption of the digital standards like XBRL.

5. Discussion Points Open Source role in XBRL reporting data flow
Open source XBRL tools state of art
Real Case: Integrating open source XBRL processors
The second item of the presentation is the “Open source XBRL tools state of art”.

6. CENATIC
CENATIC is the Spanish National Reference Centre for the Application of Information and Communication Technologies based on open source initiatives.
The CENATIC project is to promote the knowledge and best practice of open source software.
Let me introduce what is CENATIC…
CENATIC is the Spanish National Reference Centre for the Application of Information and Communication Technologies based on open source initiatives. It is a public foundation created by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Commerce within the Spanish government.
The CENATIC project is to promote the knowledge and best practice of open source software.

7. CENATIC’s XBRL open source study
To promote the use of interactive data XBRL as the standard language for the financial information data exchange.
CENATIC has published an XBRL Open Source study on April 2008
CENATIC initiatives, in coordination with the public corporate entity Red.es, look forward to promote the use of interactive data XBRL as the standard language for the financial information data exchange.
CENATIC has published an XBRL open Source study on April This study is available here:

8. XBRL open source projects “Short list” XBRL C³ community creation
Guide diagram 4
Final Analysis
Background
Initial research
Clear, useful and transparent criteria
General Features
High Level criteria (“integration level”, f.e.)
Technical criteria
XBRL functionality
Corresponds to specifications
Specific features
Define selection criteria 1
Identify libraries and tools to evaluate 2
Preliminary Analysis 3
Viability Study
XBRL open source projects “Short list”
Promote XBRL adoption in Public Sector
Growing interest in ERP sw providers
SWOT Matrix
Deeper evaluation of general features and XBRL functionalities
Special Attention to:
XBRL standard level of commitment
Maturity level and support
Evolution capabilities
Conclusions
To consider both independent open source initiatives as well as private corporation promotion ones
Special interest in success stories
National and International initiatives
Take into account National ERP software converter modules (to XBRL)
Platform selection:
the most complete in functionality
the best implemented in technical terms
the best in maturity level, support and upgrades
the best in adjusting to open source patterns
XBRL C³ community creation
Objectives
Analyze viability of XBRL open source promotion of the software for ERP providers
Identify current XBRL open source solutions
Grouping users, receivers and technology providers
CENATIC as initial promoter
Initial start up: public sector ERPs
Spanish Public Sector Taxonomies
Let’s see the guide diagram of the study.
The background of the study is to promote the XBRL adoption in Spanish Public Sector due the growing interest in ERP software providers, and the fact that XBRL open source solutions scarce at a first sight.
The objectives of the study are to analyze the viability of XBRL open source promotion of the software for ERP providers and also to identify current XBRL open source solutions.
The main idea is to create a community called XBRL C³ [ce-cube] (aligned along three axes: the business users, the information receivers and the technology providers), this community should be created to facilitate the development of XBRL components, improve interoperability of XBRL solutions and support users.
The initial research is divided in 3 steps:
1- Define the selection criteria
2- Identify libraries and tools to evaluate
3- A preliminary analysis
The objective of this initial research is to create a short list of XBRL open source projects
Finally, the output of the final analysis is a viability study based on a Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats Matrix.
XBRL open source solutions scarce at a first sight

9. Selection criteria definition General Features
Weight
Commitment and level of platform support
Licence type
Existence of promoters
Availability of success stories
Number of Developers in the community
Frequency of new software releases
Year of last software version released
Availability of Documentation
Support channels (phone, , forums, rss-feed, …)
Participation of the developer community in XBRL Spain or XBRL International working groups
High
Medium
Low
The first step was the selection of the criteria definition about the General Features. These criterias were divided in two groups:
Those related with:
- Commitment and level of platform support.
And those related with:
- Technical criteria and integration
For each criteria, there is an associated weight, that could be low, medium or high.
Technical criteria and integration
Source code available in multiple programming languages
Operating Systems / Platforms supported
Ease of integration
Other open source libraries/tools integration
Availability of APIs
IDE integration tools
Low
High
Medium

10. Selection criteria definition XBRL Features
Weight
XBRL specification conformance
XBRL 2.1 specification compliance
XBRL 2.1 Conformance Suite Test compliance
XDT 1.0 dimension specification compliance
XDT 1.0 Conformance Suite Test compliance
Formula specification (Candidate Recommendation) support
Formula Conformance Suite Test support
Versioning specification support
High
Medium
Low
Transformation formats implemented
ETL mechanisms to enable XBRL generation
Availability of XBRL APIs
XBRL processing methods to validate taxonomies
XBRL processing methods to edit taxonomies
XBRL processing methods to validate instance documents
XBRL processing methods to edit instance documents
XBRL processing methods to read/navigate through instance documents
XBRL processing methods to execute Formulae and Functions
XBRL processing methods for taxonomy versioning metadata
Medium
Low
High
Specific XBRL features
The selection of the criteria definition about the XBRL features also was divided in two groups:
Those related with:
- XBRL specification conformance
And those related with:
- Specific XBRL features

11. Identify libraries and tools for evaluation in the initial research
xBReeze Open Source Edition
Promoter: UBMATRIX (USA)
UBMatrix open source version of the commercial XBRL processor
GPL Licence
Batavia XBRL Java Library (BXJL)
Promoter: Batavia Business Reporting (Netherlands)
Batavia offer their XBRL library under a temporary evaluation licence (AGPL)
XBRLAPI.org
Promoter: Galexy Limited (Australia)
Hosted on Sourceforge, under LGPL Licence
ABRA XBRL Processor
Promoter: ABZ Reporting (Germany)
XBRL processor based on the transformation language XSLT
It is distributed under Apache 2.0 licence
The second step was to identify libraries and tools for evaluation in the initial research.
The evaluated libraries and tools were:
xBReeze Open Source Edition
Promoted by UBmatrix, from USA. It is the open source version of the commercial XBRL processor. The license is GPL.
XBRLAPI.org
Promoted by Galexy Limited, from Australia. Hosted on Sourceforge under LGPL licence.
Batavia XBRL Java Library (BXJL)
Promoted by Batavia Business Reporting, from Netherlands. The license is AGPL, and it is temporary.
ABRA XBRL Processor
Promoted by ABZ(Ei Bi Ssi) Reporting, from Germany. The XBRL processor is based on the transformation language XSLT (Ecs Es El Ti). The license is Apache 2.0

12. xBReeze Open Source Edition SWOT Analysis
WEAKNESSES
STRENGTHS
Good documentation and examples.
Fast start up and easy to integrate “black box”
A complete solution conforming to XBRL and XDT specifications
Very stable and thoroughly tested.
Additional conformance suite test and implementation tools available.
The API is not very intuitive.
Complex package and classes architecture
The performance is not remarkable
The next step is the SWOT (Es Dobliu Ou Ti) analysis of the tools and libraries selected
The first one is xBReeze, from UBmatrix.
WEAKNESSES
The API is not very intuitive.
Complex package and classes architecture
The performance is not remarkable
STRENGTHS
Good documentation and examples.
Fast start up and easy to integrate “black box”
A complete solution conforming to XBRL and XDT specifications
Very stable and thoroughly (a fondo) tested.
Additional conformance suite test and implementation tools available.
THREATS (amenzas)
Extending functionality via a development community could be tough (duro, difícil).
The addition of features using the library, such as the development of an XBRL viewer, may not be quick to implement.
OPPORTUNITIES
It offers a trusted and robust XBRL validation engine out of the box with zero cost of implementation.
Extending functionality via a development community could be tough.
The addition of features using the library, such as the development of an XBRL viewer, may not be quick to implement.
It offers a trusted and robust XBRL validation engine out of the box with zero cost of implementation.
THREATS
OPPORTUNITIES

13. XBRLAPI.org SWOT Analysis
WEAKNESSES
STRENGTHS
There is no a fully functional version released.
It doesn’t provide a fully XBRL conformant processor, able to perform validation.
The documentation is not extensive, and the number of examples is not sufficient, which makes implementation more difficult.
Excellent support and level of response.
Very good XML integration and Database connectivity.
It offers cache level facilities for processing taxonomies.
The API is very intuitive.
The second one is XBRLAPI.org, from Galexy.
WEAKNESSES
There is no a fully functional version released.
It doesn’t provide a fully XBRL conformant processor, able to perform validation.
The documentation is not extensive, and the number of examples is not sufficient, which makes implementation more difficult.
STRENGTHS
Excellent support and level of response.
Very good XML integration and Database connectivity.
It offers cache level facilities for processing taxonomies.
The API is very intuitive.
THREATS
Being mainly a personal initiative, there is a risk that development may be discontinued.
OPPORTUNITIES
It provides a very good base for the creation of new XBRL functionalities and services from scratch.
Being mainly a personal initiative, there is a risk that development may be discontinued.
It provides a very good base for the creation of new XBRL functionalities and services from scratch.
THREATS
OPPORTUNITIES

14. Batavia XBRL Java Library (BXJL) SWOT Analysis
WEAKNESSES
STRENGTHS
Steep learning curve.
A complete solution conforming to XBRL and XDT specifications.
Very clear and intuitive API
Fast to deploy and integrate
Very good performance
It provides conformance suite testing tools and implementation.
The third one is Batavia XBRL Java Library.
WEAKNESSES
Steep (empinada) learning curve.
STRENGTHS
A complete solution conforming to XBRL and XDT specifications.
Very clear and intuitive API
Fast to deploy and integrate
Very good performance
It provides conformance suite testing tools and implementation.
THREATS
It provides a temporary evaluation licence, not truly an open source initiative.
OPPORTUNITIES
It provides a very good base for creation of new XBRL functionalities and services from scratch
It offers a trusted and robust XBRL validator with a minimum cost.
It provides a temporary evaluation licence, not truly an open source initiative.
It provides a very good base for creation of new XBRL functionalities and services from scratch
It offers a trusted and robust XBRL validator with a minimum cost.
THREATS
OPPORTUNITIES

15. ABRA XBRL Processor SWOT Analysis
WEAKNESSES
STRENGTHS
Integration capabilities
Coverage of the XBRL specification
It was probably the first XBRL open source initiative
The IASC has been using this processor during some phases of the IFRS project for building a taxonomy viewer
And the last one is ABRA XBRL Processor.
WEAKNESSES
Integration capabilities
Coverage of the XBRL specification
STRENGTHS
It was probably the first XBRL open source initiative
The IASC has been using this processor during some phases of the IFRS project for building a taxonomy viewer
THREATS
It seems that its development has been discontinued in favour of a commercial version of the product
OPPORTUNITIES
It presents very interesting technical features, as it uses other XML standards like XSLT as the transformation formats
It seems that its development has been discontinued in favour of a commercial version of the product
It presents very interesting technical features, as it uses other XML standards like XSLT as the transformation formats
THREATS
OPPORTUNITIES

16. Decision matrix - Summary results
Criteria
Weight
max.
value
xBReeze
XBRLAPI.org
BXJL
ABRA
1. Commitment and level of support of the platform 1
100 55 52 49 40
2. Technical criteria and related to integration 2
130
100 94 96 66
3. XBRL specification adequacy 4
280
204
124
204
100
4. Specific XBRL features 3
330
258
162
252
180
After some calculations at the decision matrix …
  Total
 840
617
432
601
386
 % to max. value
73,4%
51,4%
71,5%
45,9%

17. Rating Total
These are the results obtained.

18. Conclusions (I) XBRL open source initiatives are scarce.
xBReeze, from UBMATRIX and Batavia XBRL Java Library (BXJL) are the most complete solutions.
One important feature on processing XBRL is the validation engine, where both xBReeze and BXJL libraries includes. The BXJL remarks on XBRL validation, but their licence is not truly open source, dependent upon some type of agreement with Batavia.
The conclusions of the study are:
- XBRL open source initiatives are scarce (escasas).
- xBReeze, from UBMATRIX and Batavia XBRL Java Library (BXJL) are the most complete solutions, in terms of technical criteria, their XBRL specification support and the XBRL specific features provided.
- The scope of the study does not include the edition and creation of taxonomies and instance documents. One important feature on processing XBRL is the validation engine, where both xBReeze and BXJL libraries includes. The BXJL remarks on XBRL validation, but their licence is not truly open source, dependent upon some type of agreement with Batavia.

19. Conclusions (and II)
The development which is most focused on an open source community is the XBRLAPI.org project, promoted by Galexy.
The combination of the libraries offers a sufficient base for the development of an XBRL service platform or suite for processing and interchange of XBRL documents.
The managing and accounting software providers should be invited to participate in the initiative to create and evolve these open source libraries.
The development which is most focused on an open source community is the XBRLApi.org project, promoted by Galexy. Despite the lack of some XBRL components in the beta version it could be extended with new features and components.
Although none of the tools evaluated provides all of documentation, ease of use, ease of set up, functionality and performance to the standard of other open source technologies, the combination of these libraries offers a sufficient base for the development of an XBRL service platform or suite for processing and interchange of XBRL documents.
As the managing and accounting software providers could be interested in the use of any resulting work they should be invited to participate in the initiative to create and evolve these open source libraries.

20. Discussion Points Open Source role in XBRL reporting data flow
Open source XBRL tools state of art
Real Case: Integrating open source XBRL processors
And the last item of the presentation is a “Real Case: Integrating open source XBRL processors”.

21. INTECO and XBRL
INTECO is the National Communication Technology Institute in Spain for society development through projects in the innovation and technology areas. The promotion of XBRL as an standard data language is aimed as a key reference model for the Information Society.
INTECO has developed an API library for generating and validating XBRL tagged data according to new Spanish General Accepted Accounting Principles taxonomy. The cost of the project was € 80,000.
Let me introduce what is INTECO …
INTECO is the National Communication Technology Institute in Spain for society development through projects in the innovation and technology areas. INTECO develops several initiatives in Security, and Quality Centre.
The promotion of XBRL as an standard data language is aimed as a key reference model for the Information Society.
INTECO has been developing the design of several software components, under open source licence LGPL, to be integrated as an API library in third party software for generating and validating XBRL tagged data according to new Spanish General Accepted Accounting Principles taxonomy (PGC2007).

22. INTECO’s XBRL API library
Objective: To provide an integration library isolating Tagged XBRL services in a layer
used by the generator side, ERP software providers
used by the receiver side, Business Registers
data volume: more than 600,000 financial statements from SMEs
Services Exposed:
Generate XBRL from an XML simple file
Generate XML simple file from an XBRL instance document
Validate XBRL instance document
XBRL viewer for financial statements
The objective was to provide an integration library isolating Tagged XBRL services in a layer
This library could be used by the generator side ERP software providers
And by the receiver side, the Business Registers
And the data volume expected is more than financial statements from SMEs
The Services Exposed are:
Generate XBRL from an XML simple file
Generate XML simple file from an XBRL instance document
Validate XBRL instance document
XBRL viewer for financial statements
And the Integration Scenarios are:
Java API library
Command Line shell wrapper
Integration Scenarios:
Java API library
Command Line shell wrapper

23. Generation of XML documents
INTECO’s XBRL API library
Sender
XBRL
Validator
Validation service
Transformation
XML to XBRL
XML
validation
Transformation service
Generation of XML documents
in a common format
XBRL
instance
Receiver
XBRL
Validator
Validation service
HTML
page
XBRL
Visualization
Visualization service
The developed open source APIs works in this way:
The ERP generates XML in a common format, then the API is able, through the transformation service, to perform an XML validation and transform this XML to XBRL. The output is an XBRL instance document, that will be validated by the validation service. So, at the end, we have a valid XBRL instance document created from an XML file.
The process on the receiver side is, given an XBRL instance document, the validation service check that the instance is OK. Then, we have 2 options, we can see the XBRL instance as a HTML page through visualization service. The second option is to transform from XBRL to XML, and to perform a validation of this XML document.
XBRL
instance
Transformation
XBRL to XML
XML
validation
Transformation service
XML
document

24. Results
November 2009:
50+ ERP providers have integrated the API Library
It is being used as a reference model for additional data flows.
In April 2009 the source code of this project has been released under LGPL licence.
Today the API Library has been integrated by more than 50 ERP providers and
It is being used as a reference model for additional data flows.
In April 2009 the source code of this project has been released under LGPL licence.
You can download the API in this URL:

25. Conclusion
These real cases using open source tools for integrating XBRL services represents an additional scenario for automating the use of XBRL tagged data in reporting chain.
Corollary: fundraising an off the shelf open source primary reporting system would be an useful XBRL solution for Developing Countries.
As conclusion:
These real cases using open source tools for integrating XBRL services represents an alternative scenario for automating the use of XBRL tagged data in the reporting chain.
Corollary: fundraising an off the shelf open source primary reporting system would be an useful XBRL solution for Developing Countries.

26. More XBRL Open Source Projects
You can find more XBRL Open source projects at website
Wiki XBRL

27. Links www.cenatic.es www.inteco.es www.xbrl.es
These are some useful links related with this presentation.

28. Questions ? Open Source Solutions in XBRL Javi Mora XBRL Spain Manager
Well, that’s all, any question?.
If not, thank you very much and thanks for your attention.
XI European Banking Supervisors XBRL Workshop, Vienna, AUSTRIA. November 16-20, 2009