Fortran Standardization as at February 1996

The specification of the Fortran language, like that of most other major programming languages, is determined by International Standards published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Membership of ISO is restricted to organisations representing countries, with a maximum of one such organisation from any country; the British Standards Institute (BSI) represents the United Kingdom within ISO.

As far as Fortran is concerned, the work of monitoring the international standardization activities, of determining and approving UK participation in such activities, and of establishing the UK position for ballots on draft Standards is carried out by the BSI's Fortran Panel (IST/5/-/5) on behalf of the BSI's Programming Languages Committee (IST/5). The BCS Fortran Specialist Group works in close collaboration with the BSI Fortran Panel in such areas as determining UK requirements for future revisions of Fortran Standards and establishing the UK response to draft Standards. Individuals who are interested in participating in the work of the BSI Fortran Panel are invited to contact its Convener, David Muxworthy.

The development and maintenance of International Fortran Standards is the responsibility of an ISO Working Group (ISO/IEC JTC1/SC22/WG5) which reports to the Sub-Committee responsible for all Programming Languages and their Environments (ISO/IEC JTC1/SC22). Membership of ISO working groups is not open to individuals directly, but only to persons who have been nominated by their national body. Thus any UK persons interested in participating in the work of WG5 must first join the UK Fortran Panel (IST/5/-/5). Further information about the work of WG5 can be found in its own set of World Wide Web pages.

The main Fortran language Standard is currently (February 1996) approaching the end of its current revision cycle, and the revised Standard is expected to be published towards the end of 1996. This version of Fortran, which will be known informally as Fortran 95, contains a small number of new features, and also incorporates the many, mostly minor, corrections that have been made to Fortran 90 as a result of problems discovered during implementation and use during the last few years.

Copies of the latest versions of these standards are available from the British Standards Institute at the following address:

• Customer Services, Sales Department
• BSI
• 389 Chiswick High Road
• London
• W4 4AL
  
  
• Tel: 020 8996 7111
• Fax: 020 8996 7048

Links updated August 2001 and October 2009.

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Details of current Fortran standardization activities can be found in WG5's own World Wide Web pages.

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Comments on this or any other of the Group's pages should be sent by email to the FSG Web Editor.