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Re: [xml-dev] Question for updating existing XML file
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On Jul 26, 2004, at 7:40 PM, Owen Walcher wrote:
I am just saying, regardless of the schema of the XML (an industry standard
interchange or internal structures) why not leave it in XML? Why always
some other storage mechanism that either disassembles the XML or makes
querying, updating and deleting in place nearly impossible?
This is somewhat of a perma-thread on this list. XML is inherently hierarchical, so a "pure" XML database will probably be hierarchical, too.
At one time hierarchical and relational databases were competing technologies, but overall the relational model, and relational databases, won out. The relational model is now more developed and generally accepted to be superior to the hierarchical model for most uses. (Please correct me if I'm wrong or oversimplifying here.)
So the best way to frame your question is "Does a hierarchical model or a relational model best solve my business problem?" If the answer is hierarchical, it probably makes sense to always store your documents as XML and query/update/insert in-place. If the answer is relational, it may make more sense to store your data relationally and only consume/create XML at the system's boundaries.
-jimbo
Fantastic - Excelsior! 2 - Excelsior! Path
XML Tools for Mac OS X
http://www.homepage.mac.com/jimbokun
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