Tracks & Forums

Tracks & Forums are how we organize the workshops. SIW Forums provide an opportunity for members of the Modeling and Simulation (M&S) community who share common interests and/or are involved in similar functions in various organizations to exchange ideas, information, and technology, to share "lessons learned," and to identify areas where common standards and practices will improve simulation interoperability and reuse.

Each Forum is organized and administered by a Planning and Review Panel (PRP) which is responsible for planning the activities of their Forum and for reviewing proposed papers and other presentations. Each of the Forums below contains the names and email addresses of the members of the PRPs.

Between Workshops, Forum members address issues and exchange information by using their  Discussion Forums. Anyone interested in a Forum can subscribe to it. Discussion forum subscribers receive all messages posted to the forum and can post forum messages using their local e-mail system. Ideas that are generated during the Workshops and on the discussion forums are developed further through SISO Study Groups If you do not see a study group for your area, you may request to create a new SISO Study Group.

Each forum communicates and conducts technical exchanges between the Workshops by utilizing their discussion forums. A discussion forum is a capability provided to users to "subscribe" (join) to a list whereby all messages sent by all subscribers are echoed to all current subscribers. Subscribing to a discussion forum causes each forum message to show up in your local email inbox. For more information about a particular forum, select from the list below or join its discussion forums today!

User Community Forums

ANL - Analysis Forum 
The Analysis (ANL) forum focuses on interoperability issues and uses of distributed models and simulations by the analysis community, including issues of experiment design and data analysis, analysis issues in Advanced Distributed Simulation (ADS) and Simulation Based Acquisition (SBA), requirements definition, as well as use cases...

 T&E - Test and Evaluation Forum
The Test & Evaluation (T&E) forum addresses issues and uses of distributed simulation in test and evaluation (T&E), including the integration of live entities with virtual and constructive simulations; the integration of hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL), Integrated Systems Test Facilities (ISTFs), and other T&E facilities...

RD&E - Research Development and Engineering Forum
The Research, Development & Engineering (RDE) Forum addresses issues and applications of distributed simulation to research, development, and engineering. The Forum focuses on RD&E community experiences with new applications using distributed computing technologies and the implications on interoperability requirements deriving from these applications.

TRAIN - Training Forum
The TRAIN forum focuses on issues associated with using simulations to support the acquisition of knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes through education, training, and performance support.  We solicit papers addressing simulation-based learning in industry, academia, and government (including the DOD), particularly those identifying interoperability or standards shortfalls or requirements.

SPECIALTY AREA FORUMS

Applications Track

 SLC - System Life Cycle Forum 
The System Life Cycle (SLC) forum focuses on M&S and related enablers of integrated, collaborative enterprises for system/vehicle or weapon system product development, particularly from a life-cycle wide, mission capability/system-of-systems perspective. 

CMSS - Crisis Management and Societal Security Forum - See HSCB-CMSS Forum.

SPACE Community Forum
The Space forum was developed to facilitate efforts to move off the planet.  The SISO Space Forum will, in particular, elicit practical suggestions for bridging NASA/KSC advanced visualization simulation for operations and the MS&T community.

HSCB-CMSS - Human Social Culture Behavior Modeling -Crisis Management and Societal Security Forum
The HSCB-CMSS Forum focuses on human modeling at individual, organizational, and societal levels in applications as diverse as stability operations, nation-building, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, homeland security, and other related fields.

Command Control Communications Computers Intelligence Surveillance &  Reconnaissance Track

C2/M&S - Command & Control/M&S Services Forum
The C2/M&S Services Forum addresses standards to ensure interoperability when coupling simulation and C2 systems; standards to ensure composability when integrating simulation components and C2 components into a common framework; and standards to represent C2 systems and the underlying infrastructure within simulation applications.

IO-ISR - Information Operations Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance Forum
The Information Operations Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (IO-ISR) forum seeks papers that deal with all aspects of Information Operations (IO), including computer network attack and defense, modeling of IO in exercise and training, and threats to the Internet and other communications infrastructures.

Distributed Simulation Development Track

DSPT - Distributed Simulation Process and Tools Forum
The Distributed Simulation Process and Tools (DSPT) forum focuses on evolving a generalized system engineering process for developing and executing distributed simulations, and on the tools used for automating various aspects of distributed simulations.

VV&A - Verification Validation & Accreditation Forum
The Verification, Validation and Accreditation (VV&A) Forum focuses on methodologies, procedures, and associated techniques used to establish credibility of models, simulations, and distributed simulations (e.g. federations) for specific intended uses.  VV&A goals emphasize quality, identifying M&S use risk, formalizing the conceptual model description via the Simulation Conceptual Model Product Development Group, and establishing recommended practices for a VV&A Overlay to the Distributed Simulation Engineering and Execution Process. Special focus areas include identifying gaps in VV&A knowledge, standards, and guidance needs.

CFI - Communication Frameworks and Infrastructure Forum
The Communication, Frameworks, and Infrastructure (CFI) forum focuses on technologies that support interoperation and run-time execution of distributed simulations.

SER - Simulation and Environment Reuse Forum-
The Simulation and Environment Reuse (SER) Forum addresses proposed standards for multi-domain use and reuse of digital representations, models, simulations, and infrastructure.

Updates
 Track Reorganization - Nov 06
Three single forum tracks (Environment, Infrastructure, and Space) dropped:  
- SNE/SENS Forum (from Environment Track) and CFI Forum (from Infrastructure Track) moved to Distributed Simulation Development Track
- Space Community Forum moved from Space Track to Applications Track

  Track Reorganization - Apr 07
Applications Track reconfigured:
VWS Forum, LOG Forum (Applications Track), and SAPD Forum (User Community Track) merged into System Management and Support (SMAS) Forum under the Applications Track.

 The SMAS Forum Renamed - Mar 09
The System Management and Support (SMAS) Forum was renamed the System Life Cycle (SLC) Forum. The 2009 elections merged the SNE SENS and SMS COMPOSE Forums into the Simulation and Environment Reuse (SER) Forum and added Open Source Software (OSS).

 Crisis Management and CMSS Merged - Apr 10
The 2010 elections merged the Crisis Management and Societal Security (CMSS) Forum into the Human Social Culture Behavior (HSCB) Modeling Forum to become the HSCB-CMSS Forum.
Groups