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It is this narrow approach to split data into different categories that
XML transcends. Together with the simple and standardized (single)
syntax, this simplifies interoperability of documents AND data.
Oh well, I know that I will never get Alaric to see beyond this narrow
markup text -> XML, data -> something else (like ASN1) division.
Best regards
Michael
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Alaric B Snell [mailto:alaric@alaric-snell.com]
> Sent: Friday, November 21, 2003 12:28 PM
> To: Baiss Magnusson
> Cc: XML-DEV
> Subject: Re: [xml-dev] Relating to XML
>
> Baiss Magnusson wrote:
> > I have a direct to java client web application which parses a XML
file,
> > I designed the XML syntax, of recipes into Enterprise Objects
(EO's).
> >
> > My question is: How does one go about creating interoperability with
> > other applications?
> > For instance, there is another cookbook application around which has
an
> > export function and produces an XML type file of similar, but
slightly
> > different tag syntax than my cookbook program. I would like to
import
> > it's recipes.
> >
> > Is there something about XML services that I am missing?
>
> Nope - XML doesn't magically make things interoperate; just as with
any
> other data format, both ends need to be aware of the meaning of the
> information you're passing back and forth to make sense of it!
>
> So you define XML formats - like XHTML, SVG, and so on - specifying
what
> elements go inside what other elements, and documenting what they
> *mean*. Both applications must stick to the same spec to acheive
anything.
>
> There has been much hype to the tune that XML somehow improves
> interoperability, but alas, there is no real truth behind it.
>
> Using XML for data interchange isn't always the best solution, anyway;
> XML is far better suited to document-type formats, where the content
you
> are exchange is (at heart) a single string of text with structural and
> styling information supplied by the elements. If your XML looks like
this:
>
> <para>text text text text text text text text
> <productName>foo</productName> text text text ...
>
> ...then everyone seems to agree that XML is good, but when you start
to
> get stuff more like:
>
> <purchaseOrder>
> <transactionId>12345-2341234</transactionId>
> <items>
> <item>
> <code>G345</code>
> <qty>10</qty>
> </item>
> </items>
> </purchaseOrder>
>
> ...then you may find it easier to stick to better-established
standards
> for such things, like CSV files!
>
> My personal measure of when XML is being used outside of its domain is
> to think about what the content would look like if I just stripped out
> all the elements. The first example comes out as:
>
> text text text text text text text text foo text text text...
>
> Which, had I written some better example prose than 'text', would make
> some sense, whereas the purchase order comes out as:
>
> 12345-2341234 G345 10
>
> ...which suggests this is really data being exchanged, rather than a
> document.
>
> But plenty of others will disagree... :-)
>
> ABS
>
>
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