[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message]

Questions about XPointer Framework

• To: xml-dev@l...
• Subject: Questions about XPointer Framework
• From: Gustaf Liljegren <gustaf.liljegren@x...>
• Date: Tue, 15 Oct 2002 10:58:32 +0200

Some questions about the XPointer Framework:

1. "An XPointer processor takes as input an XML-encoded resource and a
fragment identifier taken from the URI reference that was used to access
the resource, and produces as output either an identification of some
subresource within that resource based on the pointer extracted from the
fragment identifier, or one or more errors, or both."

What is an "identification of some subresource"? The only resonable output
from an XPointer expression I can think of is an XML fragment.

As I understand it, XLink and XPointer are specs meant to acctually *do*
something (fetch a document or fragment), while XPath is just a syntax for
pointing at things.

2. In "XML Bible" (1999) I read about two other problems surrounding
XPointers:

- In practice, HTTP can't deliver fragments, only whole documents.
- Fragments are not valid XML, sometimes not even well-formed.

I haven't seen much activity in these areas since 1999. No XML aware HTTP
1.2 and XML Fragment Interchange is stuck as a CR. Is SOAP the solution?

3. "...this specification reserves all scheme names for definition in
additional W3C XPointer scheme specifications. However, the scheme
mechanism provides a general framework for extensibility..." Where's the
extensibility? If I can't name my own scheme, then the extensibility is
only in the hands of W3C, right?

4. The comma in production [3] should be removed, shouldn't it?

Gustaf

• Follow-Ups:
  • RE: Questions about XPointer Framework
    • From: "Ron Daniel" <rdaniel@t...>

• Prev by Date: RE: Wired News Redesign Using The Latest Web Standards
• Next by Date: Castor 0.9.4 available
• Previous by thread: Wired News Redesign Using The Latest Web Standards
• Next by thread: RE: Questions about XPointer Framework
• Index(es):
  • Date
  • Thread