xml-dev - Re: Who will maintain SAX?

[Paul Tchistopolskii <paul@qub.com>]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Bullard, Claude L (Len) <clbullar@ingr.com>

> DOM.  Frankly, I can no longer imagine 
> a practical system in which I don't need both.

Well, I think I can show you such a system.

It is almost *any* XSLT engine. ( XT and SAXON, 
for example ).

Yes, those engines *support*  DOM, but usually 
they not *use* DOM ( because DOM is not a good 
API for some cases, when speed is a priority. ).

There is some simplification in my statement, but 
I think it is clear that DOM is *not* a first-class 
API, when SAX  *is* a first class API.

I'l say that SAX is the *only* XML first-class API.

The entire XML world is built on SAX. I think it is 
just funny that such an important API is produced
in unpredictable fashion.

SAX2 is fixing many troubles introduced by SAX1.
( 'what particular SAX parser should I use to get 
access to the comments?' ). But not all of the 
troubles are fixed. 

SAX2 is also not as reliable as SAX1 was 
( I'm using the version from SAXON.jar - no 
real problems there, just some small problems, 
when systemID gets 'lost' e  t.c. ). 

However, to me those 'small problems' is a 
clear sign that the SAX2 API has not been widely 
used and this is a clear sign that it will get changed. 

My bet is that SAX2 will get changed.

I don't know what was the idea behind 'comments 
are optional' in SAX1. I can't even *guess* 
what was the idea.  My guess is that five ( six? 
two ? ) developers decided "ah - usually people 
don't need access to comments".

When the core, unavoidable,  'stdio' of XML 
API is designed in such fashion - this looks 
well ... not serious... 

SAX influences almost every XML-application 
on the planet. *Only* SAX has such a status.

Comparing to SAX, DOM is a second-class API.

If second-class API *is* maintained by W3C, but 
first-class API is *not* maintained by W3C - I think 
the inconsistency is obvious. 

Either W3C should drop DOM or it should take SAX.

Ah, I'll never understand  the big politics.

Rgds.Paul.