Re: [xml-dev] (In)Validate My Assumptions on Linking.

[peter murray-rust <pm286@cam.ac.uk>]

At 08:49 28/09/2006, Ben Trafford wrote:

>         Okay,
>
>         After much thinking, reading, and reviewing, I've come to 
> these three ideas:

First - many thanks Ben,
         Even if the result of your deliberations is to show that the 
problem is too complex or only part of it can be tackled it'll be 
extremely valuable. Or if you show that it is already done. But I 
believe there is a middle ground and that a clear simple approach to 
80/20 will be valuable.


>         1) Stylesheet languages need some sort of way to display 
> links from generic XML. This is so we can interact with them in 
> user agents. By "stylesheet languages," I am specifically referring 
> to XSL-FO and CSS.

Yes. I expect this to be moderately tractable. It it helps promote FO 
that will be specially valuable. (I am sick of dealing with broken PDFs)

>         2) Links need to be declared in generic XML, so no forced 
> syntax like XLink 1.0. This is so that all the various dialects 
> people have used to describe linking can get along without breaking 
> (backwards and forwards compatibility).
>
>         3) XLink is -conceptually- on the right side of the 80/20. 
> Forget the syntax, and focus on the actual ideas -- do they cover 
> what needs to be covered? Especially if it were possible to easily 
> extend them in the future.

I am not sure what the difference is between 2 and 3.

There is no doubt that a full treatment of linking is deep and 
complex. I expect to find that HyTime solved most of it. I sat for 
several hours at XML 1998 (I think) with Eliot Kimber explaining it 
patiently to me. I think I understood it them - I don't now!.

So HyTime was ahead of its time, but the time is catching up. I don't 
think we should use HyTime as the language is arcane by current 
discourse. I think people can understand linking better than they did 
10 years ago if they have a clear exposition.

>         Please shred my assumptions. Critical feedback would be helpful.

My guess i that you might come up with something that says "use Xlink 
in the following way and it will do the following for you " and that 
will cover everything I want.

>         Thank you!
>
>--->Ben

P.



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Peter Murray-Rust
Unilever Centre for Molecular Sciences Informatics
University of Cambridge,
Lensfield Road,  Cambridge CB2 1EW, UK
+44-1223-763069