Re: [xml-dev] Re: maps

[Uche Ogbuji <uche.ogbuji@fourthought.com>]

> Uche Ogbuji scripsit:
> 
> > Simon has brought up the more 
> > practical geospatial example.  But the folks who could clean up this mess 
> > mostly just take in all the warnings and blithely respond "sorry we had to 
> > satisfy OO and relational data type needs from our chartered requirements".
> 
> Here's a sketch of a way through the problem.  Define an (XML-based,
> why not?) regex-based expression language for datatypes.  Then write
> interpreters for this language that export appropriate datatypes
> to RELAX NG schema validators and other tools.
> 
> <library uri="http://http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-datatypes";>
>         <datatype "boolean">
>                 <rule regex="true|1" value="true"/>
>                 <rule regex="false|0" value="false"/>
>         </datatype>
>         <datatype "integer">
>                 <rule regex="+0" value="0"/>
>                 <rule regex="-0" value="0"/>
>                 <rule regex="0" value="0"/>
>                 <rule regex="+0*([1-9][0-9]*)" value="\1"/>
>                 <rule regex="-0*([1-9][0-9]*)" value="-\1"/>
>                 <rule regex="0*([1-9][0-9]*)" value="\1"/>
>         </datatype>
> </library>
> 
> This syntax does not handle constraining facets yet; I leave it up
> to someone else to figure out how to integrate these.  The basic
> questions "Is this string lexical?" and "Do these strings have strings the same
> value?" are mapped to "Does this string match any regex?" and "When
> mapped into the corresponding values, are these two strings identical?"

I really like this, and it's something like what I've had in mind.  Now I have 
to go sacrifice a newt to be granted the time to hack at it.  I think 
combining this with Eric's XVIF, as Simon mentioned would also light the way 
to extending it into XPath, and from there so much else.


> > And so the Titanic lumbers on.  Nought but the iceberg itself will alter its 
> > course.
> 
> Nevertheless some people may decide to get off the boat first.

I'm on the little rubber dinghy with Fela blaring from the loudspeakers: 
"Shuffering and Shmiling" :-)


-- 
Uche Ogbuji                                    Fourthought, Inc.
http://uche.ogbuji.net    http://4Suite.org    http://fourthought.com
Track chair, XML/Web Services One Boston: http://www.xmlconference.com/
Basic XML and RDF techniques for knowledge management, Part 7 - http://www-106.ibm.com/developerworks/xml/library/x-think12.html
Keeping pace with James Clark - http://www-106.ibm.com/developerworks/xml/library/x-jclark.html
Python and XML development using 4Suite, Part 3: 4RDF - http://www-105.ibm.com/developerworks/education.nsf/xml-onlinecourse-bytitle/8A1EA5A2CF4621C386256BBB006F4CEC