Re: [xml-dev] [newbie] Mapping a Map 101?

[PA <petite.abeille@gmail.com>]

On Dec 11, 2004, at 23:07, Tim Bray wrote:

> If you have a Macintosh, the disks are just stuffed with "plists",  
> which are an XML expression of a map, sort of;

I'm familiar with property lists:

http://www.javalobby.org/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=16260&tstart=0

> the XML syntax is rather horrible:

Ok... Why would you qualify it as "horrible" though? How would you  
model it instead? I have to confess that to me it all looks like a blur  
of angle brackets :o)

Here is how a "old style" property list look like:

{ user = wshakesp; birth = 1564; death = 1616; }

http://developer.apple.com/documentation/Cocoa/Conceptual/ 
PropertyLists/Concepts/OldStylePListsConcept.html

Here is the equivalent XML version:

<dict>
     <key>user</key>
     <string>wshakesp</string>
     <key>birth</key>
     <integer>1564</integer>
     <key>death</key>
     <integer>1616</integer>
</dict>

http://developer.apple.com/documentation/Cocoa/Conceptual/ 
PropertyLists/Concepts/XMLPListsConcept.html

How would you make the XML format to represent such a dictionary  
structure less "horrible"?

Cheers,

PA.