xml-dev - RE: xml langage that describe log files

["DuCharme, Robert" <Robert.DuCharme@moodys.com>]

One issue with XML and log files is that people usually want to append log
events to their log files, but XML well-formedness requirements mean that
the entire file must be enclosed by a single container element. This could
mean, for example, inserting a new logEvent element before the logEvents
end-tag below instead of doing a simple append:

  <logEvents>
    <logEvent id="L1".../>
    <logEvent id="L2".../>
    <logEvent id="L3".../>
  </logEvents>

Fortunately, external general entities let you still implement this using
simple appends. If you add your log entries to the file logentries.txt in a
format like this,

  <logEvent id="L1".../>
  <logEvent id="L2".../>
  <logEvent id="L3".../>

then you could use the following well-formed document to process your log as
XML:

  <!DOCTYPE logEvents [
  <!-- logEvents and logEvent element type and attribute list declarations
if  you
       want it to be valid XML -->
  <!ENTITY logFile SYSTEM "logentries.txt">
  ]>
  <logEvents>&logFile;</logEvents>


Bob DuCharme          www.snee.com/bob           <bob@  
snee.com>  "The elements be kind to thee, and make thy
spirits all of comfort!" Anthony and Cleopatra, III ii

***************************************************************************
This is xml-dev, the mailing list for XML developers.
To unsubscribe, mailto:majordomo@xml.org&BODY=unsubscribe%20xml-dev
List archives are available at http://xml.org/archives/xml-dev/
***************************************************************************