RE: xslt2: Retrieving a directory's non-XML file names

> An idea was occurring in my mind since quite some time. Can 
> we standardise the namespaces of extension mechanisms (at 
> least for Java) in XSLT (perhaps in versions after XSLT 2.0) 
> ? I guess it won't be much effort for different products to 
> comply, and would bring standardization in this area also.
> 
> Would be great if you could consider this proposal in the XSL WG.

The XSL WG attempted to standardize bindings to Java extension functions in
the abortive XSLT 1.1 proposal. The work was abandoned but you can still
find the working draft if you search for it.

There was very heated debate on the proposal at the time, on this list and
elsewhere. A sizeable section of the community took the view that it was not
the job of the XSL WG to standardize language bindings for Java or any other
flavour-of-the-day language, and the WG responded to this concern.

It would be nice if this could be taken up elsewhere, for example in the
Java Community Process, but at the moment I think that is unlikely to
happen. If it does, then judging from the speed of XQJ development, it will
take years to deliver anything.

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/