xml-dev - Coca-Cola Data [Was RE: Is this Impossible !!]

[Mark Birbeck <Mark.Birbeck@iedigital.net>]

I think speed is not an issue. As a proportion of the time spent sending
the query, extracting the data and then packaging it up for return, the
time you take to convert the query from one syntax to another is
negligible.

However, what you lose by using SQL syntax IS an issue. You have data
stored in a relational database which you query in a relational way, but
then return the results as a node set. This seems OK, until you consider
what you have presented to the outside world - a node set which can be
queried using SQL syntax. Now, imagine that someone else stores their
data in an object database, but also returns their results in XML. They
are presenting a node set which can be queried using some object query
syntax.

So we have two sets of data that to the outside world have similar
structure - they are both a set of hierarchical nodes - but which have
two different ways of being queried. Not good. Add to that, that the
person who did the object database may convert you to his way of
thinking and you then want to ditch your relational database, and
suddenly all those queries that people have set up to access your server
have to change.

My point is simply that just as you return data from your server in a
common format - XML - so too you should accept requests in a common
format. You should convert requests in, say, XPath, to SQL queries or
object queries or whatever queries. Otherwise you are not really
presenting an XML-interface to your data.

And we'll never get the Coca-Cola effect (the whole world singing the
same song, if you're wondering).

Best regards,

Mark Birbeck
x-port.net Ltd.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: AlanM [mailto:AlanM@SYNECTICS.Soft.net]
> Sent: Thursday, October 21, 1999 5:11 PM
> To: xml-dev@ic.ac.uk
> Subject: RE: Is this Impossible !!
> 
> 
> 
> Hi guys,
> Since speed is criteria is it faster to send Queries to the 
> server in SQL or
> XML. If sent in XML we will have to parse it and then convert 
> it into SQL
> again, which may slow down the process.
> 
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From:	Mark Birbeck [SMTP:Mark.Birbeck@iedigital.net]
> > Sent:	Thursday, October 21, 1999 8:29 PM
> > To:	xml dev mailing list
> > Subject:	RE: Is this Impossible !!
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > Hi everyone,
> >  
> > Very busy so can't give you in depth on this, but I note 
> that you are
> > using VB scripting so here is a bit of code from a VB 
> script version of
> > our SOAP server.
> >  
> > It's not that complicated, but it provides you with an easy 
> way to create
> > a results set from any values. For example, it could build 
> a node list
> > from a three element array, with the first element being 
> another array
> > that contains record sets, the second being an integer, and 
> the third
> > being an XML DOM node (should you want to).
> >  
> > Note that it copes with nested recordsets - which is great 
> if you are
> > using the Microsoft data shaping facility in ADO. In fact using this
> > routine and data shaping is probably the easiest way to get an XML
> > document with real structure out of a relational database.
> >  
> > Two quick things that are slightly off theme:
> >  
> > First - if you are returning XML you should really consider 
> querying in
> > XML. The client should not really be sending SQL queries 
> since you are not
> > returning a SQL result set. You should accept an XML query 
> (say, using
> > XPath) and then convert that on the server to an SQL query. 
> That way the
> > fact that your data is currently relational will be hidden 
> (since it may
> > change).
> >  
> > Second - for those interested - note how much better SOAP 
> structure is
> > than XML-RPC! I've fallen for it!!
> >  
> > Best regards,
> >  
> > Mark Birbeck
> > x-port.net Ltd.
> >  
> >  
> > 
> > 	-----Original Message-----
> > 	From: Goyal, Sanjeev [mailto:Sanjeev.Goyal@usa.xerox.com]
> > 	Sent: Thursday, October 21, 1999 2:49 PM
> > 	To: 'Abhishek Srivastava'
> > 	Cc: xml dev mailing list
> > 	Subject: RE: Is this Impossible !!
> > 	
> > 	
> > 	Abhishek,
> > 	 
> > 	Most of the XML Parser implementations provides mechanism to
> > generate well formed XML documents from the DOM Tree. I 
> have used sun's
> > XML parser, it provides APIs to generate well-formed XML from your
> > Document Node.
> > 	 
> > 	Hope it helps.
> > 	Sanjeev
> > 	 
> > 	 -----Original Message-----
> > 	From: Abhishek Srivastava [mailto:abisheks@india.hp.com]
> > 	Sent: Wednesday, October 20, 1999 1:29 AM
> > 	To: xml dev mailing list
> > 	Subject: Is this Immpossible !!
> > 	
> > 	
> > 
> > 		Hi All,
> > 		 
> > 		I have the following requirement. A client 
> wants to query a
> > database. It sends out an SQL Query to the Database server. 
> At the server
> > side, instead of returning a recordset, it returns an XML File.
> > 		 
> > 		The client on receiving the XML file, parsers it for
> > "Validity" (to be sure that all elements it had asked for 
> are there).
> > 		 
> > 		Problem is that at the server side, How to build the xml
> > document.
> > 		Presently, I am doing something like this
> > 		 
> > 		String("<Name>") + rs.getField("auName") + 
> String("</Name>")
> > 		 
> > 		However, this is a very inelegant approach as 
> the code is
> > full of such string concatenations.
> > 		 
> > 		Is there a more elegant solution to this ?  All 
> the material
> > on XML talks about parsing and reading XML. What about 
> writing them ? Are
> > there DOM / SAX Api extensions available that would 
> > 		create "VALID" XML documents without clutter in 
> the code ?
> > 		 
> > 		Any help would be greatly appreciated.
> > 		 
> > 		Thanks & Best Regards,
> > 		Abhishek.
> > 	
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> > 		    _/               Abhishek Srivastava
> > 		   _/                Hewlett Packard ISO       
> > 		  _/_/_/   _/_/_/    -------------------   
> > 		 _/   /   _/  _/     (Work)   +91-80-2251554 x1190
> > 		_/  _/   _/_/_/      (Ip)     15.10.47.37            
> > 		        _/           (Url)
> > <http://sites.netscape.net/abhishes/homepage>               
>          
> > 		       _/            You've heard it all by 
> now. Get wired
> > or get whacked. 
> > 		                     You're networking or you're not
> > working. Dot-com or die 
> > 		                     - SUN MICROSYSTEMS 
> > 	
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> > 		
> >  << File: SOAP Return.asp >> 
> 
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