Re: linkedin discussion of "can you sell an XSLT?"

On Fri, Jun 5, 2009 at 3:50 AM, Florent Georges<lists@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> Dimitre Novatchev wrote:
>
> B Hi,
>
>> What is still missing is the ability to compile a set/library
>> of stylesheets that can be used by a primary stylesheet at
>> runtime. B Though there is not any provision in the W3 Spec how
>> to do this for XSLT (I think things are better for XQuery), a
>> de-facto standard/implementation would be extremely useful. Not
>> only some existing libraries such as FXSL, FunctX, ()one put
>> here any EXSLT *implementation*, although EXSLT is just a
>> specification, and by default the implementations are not in
>> XSLT themselves) etc., would benefit from easier deployment
>> (say in browsers), but this will stimulate authors to write
>> more such libraries -- to the benefit of the whole XSLT
>> developers community.
>
> B While I agree on the benefits, I do not think that's an effect
> of being able to /compile/ libraries, but more generally of
> having a standard /packaging/ format (kind of a JAR containing a
> set of XSLT modules and a descriptor of them, for instance.)
>

Both have a great effect. Whenever a developer considers producing an
XSLT application, which uses an XSLT library, often the blocking
factor is the necessity to distribute to the customers not only the
application itself, but also hundreds of files that are part of the
XSLT library being used.

I agree that even a mechanism to provide something like a zipped
archive in a single file solves this problem and this would be
sufficient if it were not less - performant than having the stylesheet
modules already compiled.


--
Cheers,
Dimitre Novatchev
---------------------------------------
Truly great madness cannot be achieved without significant intelligence.
---------------------------------------
To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk
-------------------------------------
Never fight an inanimate object
-------------------------------------
You've achieved success in your field when you don't know whether what
you're doing is work or play