Re: request for XML resources
/ John Reinke <jmreinke@falcon.cc.ukans.edu> was heard to say:
| > Stephane Bortzmeyer wrote:
| > > On Tuesday 7 November 2000, at 2 h 34, the keyboard of John Reinke
| > > [...]
| > > More seriously, there is not yet any XML+XSL browser which
| > > anyone reasonable find ready.
|
| Really? I find that hard to believe, although I've not found much yet
| either. I can't imagine that a modified web browser that displays pages
| using XML, DTD, and XSL files doesn't exist.
It's a non-trivial modification. Most web browsers have a really
hard-coded, procedural notion of HTML. A "<p>" inserts a line break
and so-much-space, an "<li>" inserts a line break and a bullet
and...etc.
I think it's fair to say that HTML succeeded not only because it was a
small, simple tag set, but because the semantics were standardized and
easy to implement procedurally.
Implementing rule-based (be it CSS, XSL, DSSSL, FOSI, or your style
language of choice) formatting engine is a significant undertaking.
IE5 understands XML and XSL and Mozilla is moving that way, but it's
hard to publish XML on the web today unless you're in a closed
environment where you know what browser will be used.
In the meantime, batch or on-the-fly conversion to HTML is a practical
solution.
| Thanks for the tip. Either some_XML ==> another_XML or non-XML ==> XML
| translation is what I'm most interested in. Anyone have suggestions for
| research topics? ;-) An application that translates but needs to do a
| little more thinking and guessing is what I'd like to do. If I can find
| something that people need, it would be even better.
XML->XML is the domain of tools like XSLT and Omnimark. Non-XML->XML
conversion, what I colloquially refer to as "dragging data up hill" is
really, really hard.
I suppose a good RTF to XML tool would be appreciated. I bet an OCR to
XML tool would be appreciated, too.
| > > > For parsing libraries, is expat normally used although it's
| > > > non-validating, or does everyone build their own?
Expat is a common answer for non-validating parsers. The Apache work
is also popular. And Sun (disclaimer: they pay my salary) has JAXP.
There's more parsers out there than you can shake a stick out, there's
little motivation to roll your own, I expect.
| With all the XML hype I've heard on the net and in the IT and business
| publications, I'd at least expect that SOMEONE is using it in the real
| world. Right?
What constitutes the real world?
Be seeing you,
norm
--
Norman Walsh <ndw@nwalsh.com> | The stone fell on the pitcher? Woe to
http://nwalsh.com/ | the pitcher. The pitcher fell on the
| stone? Woe to the pitcher.--Rabbinic
| Saying
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