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RE: The triples datamodel -- was Re: Semantic Web pe

• To: "Elliotte Rusty Harold" <elharo@m...>
• Subject: RE: The triples datamodel -- was Re: Semantic Web permathread, iteration n+1
• From: "Howard Katz" <howardk@f...>
• Date: Fri, 4 Jun 2004 10:21:44 -0700
• Cc: "XML Developers List" <xml-dev@l...>,"Mark Baker" <distobj@a...>
• Importance: Normal
• In-reply-to: <p06010202bce636fe640d@[192.168.254.88]>

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Elliotte Rusty Harold [mailto:elharo@m...]

  [ snip ... ]

> At 9:16 PM -0400 6/3/04, Mark Baker wrote:
>
> >I agree, it's not the triples themselves which are key.  I believe that
> >what's key is a data model which presents information in discrete
> >"packets" so that I can, for example, add a new packet without impacting
> >the ability of deployed software to extract other packets.  Triples do
> >that, but so can other models.  So, in response to Elliotte, this is
> >why vanilla XML (+Namespaces+URIs) isn't sufficient.
>
> I was with you until the last sentence. I see no reason why
> plain-vanilla XML+Namespaces can't do this. You make the claim on
> http://www.markbaker.ca/2002/09/Blog/2003/10/09/#2003-10-rdf-and-xml
> that " additional properties can be added without impacting the
> meaning of the former interpretation, i.e. potentially breaking some
> application somewhere. An XML app can't assume this; it might be
> breaking its validity against some schema someplace." Simply put, I
> don't care if adding additional information breaks some schema
> someplace. Properly designed XML applications ask whether a document
> contains the information need. They do not ask whether the document
> contains additional information they don't need or care about.

I don't understand this last point, Elliotte. How can a properly designed
application ask whether a document contains the information it needs without
knowing about the document's structure? If you add information, you're most
likely changing the structure, and consequently the schema. How can an
application cope with ad hoc changes like that w/out looking at the schema,
ie without doing validation?

What am I not understanding?

Howard

> I agree that XML document should be Extensible.  I disagree that plain
> vanilla XML documents aren't extensible. Validity is not required.
>
> --
>
>    Elliotte Rusty Harold
>    elharo@m...
>    Effective XML (Addison-Wesley, 2003)
>    http://www.cafeconleche.org/books/effectivexml
>
> http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN%3D0321150406/ref%3Dnosim/ca
> feaulaitA
>
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• Follow-Ups:
  • RE: The triples datamodel -- was Re: SemanticWeb permathread, iteration n+1
    • From: Elliotte Rusty Harold <elharo@m...>
  • Re: The triples datamodel -- was Re: SemanticWeb permathread, iteration n+1
    • From: "Thomas B. Passin" <tpassin@c...>

• References:
  • Re: The triples datamodel -- was Re: SemanticWeb permathread, iteration n+1
    • From: Elliotte Rusty Harold <elharo@m...>

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