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Re: syntax, model

• To: xml-dev@l...
• Subject: Re: syntax, model
• From: Mike Champion <mc@x...>
• Date: Thu, 23 Oct 2003 19:08:46 -0700 (PDT)
• In-reply-to: <r02000200-1028-1A20B66605BB11D89A2C0003937A08C2@[192.168.124.11]>

--- "Simon St.Laurent" <simonstl@s...> wrote:

> The XPath data model - for 1.0 at least - was simple
> enough to work, largely
> because it didn't create anything new.  While I find
> it frustrating
> because (IMHO) it discards too much, it sort of
> mostly does the job.

Ah, but Grasshopper[1], it "mostly does the job"
precisely because it discards so much. 



> The XPath 1.0 data model is the only one I can take
> seriously as "a
> shared data model that works".  It is so small a
> data model - even
> compared to CSS or DOM, never mind OWL/RDF - that I
> have a hard time
> taking its success as any grand claim about the
> value of data models.

I agree. I use it only as a counter-example to the
assertion that syntax is everything, don't need no
stinkin' data models to do interop. Without the
dirt-simple reference data model, everyone has to
wallow in the many useless distinctions that pure
syntax forces one to confront.


> 
> For DOM, I suspect the whole process was a mistake
> that grew and grew.
> It produced some nice results in browsers that cared
> to implement it in
> an HTML context, but beyond that, I suspect it did
> little except retard
> the development of more usable alternatives. 

The best is the enemy of the good.  

Sheesh, I make myself sick with the epigrams tonight
:-) 

[1]
http://www.dm.net/~karen/kungfu/kungfu_epguide.html 
Someone on xml-dev once took offense at being referred
to as "Grasshopper" IIRC.

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