xml-dev - Errata in XHTML 1.0

[Elliotte Rusty Harold <elharo@metalab.unc.edu>]

The ATTLIST declaration of xml:space given several times in the XHTML
1.0 strict DTD may be incorrect. XHTML 1.0 consistently declares it as

  xml:space   (preserve)     #FIXED 'preserve'

For example,

<!ATTLIST style
  %i18n;
  type        %ContentType;  #REQUIRED
  media       %MediaDesc;    #IMPLIED
  title       %Text;         #IMPLIED
  xml:space   (preserve)     #FIXED 'preserve'
  >

<!-- script statements, which may include CDATA sections -->
<!ELEMENT script (#PCDATA)>
<!ATTLIST script
  charset     %Charset;      #IMPLIED
  type        %ContentType;  #REQUIRED
  src         %URI;          #IMPLIED
  defer       (defer)        #IMPLIED
  xml:space   (preserve)     #FIXED 'preserve'
  >

However, section 2.10 of the XML 1.0 spec disallows this:

 When declared, it must be given as an enumerated type whose only
possible values are "default" and "preserve". For example:

      <!ATTLIST poem   xml:space (default|preserve) 'preserve'>

A fixed value of preserve does not seem to be allowed. Some parsers like
Xerces-J 1.10 flag this. Others do not. (Indeed every other version of
Xerces seems to change its mind about this.) I haven't seen any
clarification about whether   "xml:space   (preserve)     #FIXED
'preserve'" qualifies as "an enumerated type whose only possible values
are "default" and "preserve" given that it doesn't allow default as a
value. It is at least an enumerated type whose only possible value is
preserve.

Either XHTML 1.0 or Xerces-J 1.1.0 needs to be fixed here. I don't know
which one. A clarification from the XML folks would be appreciated.

-- 
+-----------------------+------------------------+-------------------+
| Elliotte Rusty Harold | elharo@metalab.unc.edu | Writer/Programmer |
+-----------------------+------------------------+-------------------+ 
|               Java I/O (O'Reilly & Associates, 1999)               |
|            http://metalab.unc.edu/javafaq/books/javaio/            |
|   http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=1565924851/cafeaulaitA/   |
+----------------------------------+---------------------------------+
|  Read Cafe au Lait for Java News:  http://metalab.unc.edu/javafaq/ | 
|  Read Cafe con Leche for XML News: http://metalab.unc.edu/xml/     |
+----------------------------------+---------------------------------+

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