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Re: extrernal entities - part 2

• To: Rick Marshall <rjm@z...>
• Subject: Re: extrernal entities - part 2
• From: Robert Koberg <rob@k...>
• Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2005 18:35:16 -0800
• Cc: xml-dev@l...
• In-reply-to: <420AC5EF.6010601@z...>
• References: <420AC5EF.6010601@z...>
• User-agent: Mozilla Thunderbird 1.0 (Macintosh/20041206)

Why are you using XML? Seems like you have a fundamental 
misunderstanding (OK, you have corrected some extreme beginner mistakes) 
of what XML is and what is is good for...

-Rob


Rick Marshall wrote:
> <?xml version="1.0"?>
> 
> <!DOCTYPE label [
>        <!ELEMENT vpn EMPTY>
>        <!ATTLIST vpn code ENTITY #REQUIRED>
>        <!NOTATION VPN SYSTEM "/usr/local/app/shoeman/bin/vpn">
>        <!ENTITY codex SYSTEM "1234" NDATA VPN>
>        ]>
> 
> <label_file><vpn code="codex" /></label_file>
> 
> ok, a bit more background here. i am trying to overcome a somewhat 
> classic "late-binding" problem.
> 
> we get requests to print labels. the request come as text files that are 
> converted to xml and stored. the text file has everything we need to 
> print the labels except for some local info (essentially our product 
> number). sometime between receiving the files and actually printing the 
> labels all the data bits are filled in and we do have the required 
> product number. this can be identified from a code supplied by the 
> customer.
> 
> the code above is a simplified version just to illustrate the point.
> 
> when we produce the final output (zebra printer codes in this case) we 
> need to include our product code. so what i want to do is embed in the 
> xml a call to a function in our system that, when passed the customer 
> code, will return our product code.
> 
> everything i've read suggests that the above snippet should work 
> (assuming /usr/local/app/sheoman/bin/vpn is executable and returns 
> something).
> 
> and here is the simplified stylesheet:<xsl:stylesheet version="1.0" 
> xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform">
> 
>        <xsl:output method="text"/>
> 
>        <xsl:template match="/">
>                <xsl:apply-templates match="label_file"/>
>                </xsl:template>
> 
>        <xsl:template match="label_file">
>                <xsl:text>
> XX</xsl:text>
>                <xsl:apply-templates match="vpn"/>
>                </xsl:template>
> 
>        <xsl:template match="vpn">
>                <xsl:text>
> YY </xsl:text>
>                <xsl:value-of select="@code"/>
>                <xsl:text> ZZ</xsl:text>
>                </xsl:template>
> 
>        </xsl:stylesheet>
> 
> and the output:
> 
> XX
> YY codex ZZ
> 
> as you can see the entity "codex" is not  being replaced by the call to 
> /usr/local/...
> 
> i can devise alternatives, but they would not be xml solutions and that 
> has other problems downstream.
> 
> ps if this is the correc tsolution then it is a good reason to hang on 
> to dtds.
> 
> rick
> 
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    • From: David Lyon <david.lyon@c...>

• References:
  • extrernal entities - part 2
    • From: Rick Marshall <rjm@z...>

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