Re: [xml-dev] RE: Concerned about the increasing reliance on XPath

[Chris Maloney <voldrani@gmail.com>]

http://www.exslt.org/dyn/functions/evaluate/index.html

On Mon, May 9, 2011 at 3:18 PM, Costello, Roger L. <costello@mitre.org> wrote:
> Hi Folks,
>
> Suppose you create an XML vocabulary for describing purchases:
>
> Purchase
>     Item: decimal
>     Total: XPath
>
> The value of <Total> is any XPath expression.
>
> Here's a sample instance document:
>
> <Purchase>
>      <Item>10.00</Item>
>      <Item>20.00</Item>
>      <Total>sum(../Item)</Total>
> </Purchase>
>
> You input that instance document into your "purchase processor" and it outputs:
>
>    Your purchases:
>        Item: $10.00
>        Item: $20.00
>        Total: $30.00
>
> The XPath expression in the <Total> element was evaluated by the "purchase processor."
>
> The <Total> element is powerful - the full power of XPath is available to it. To further illustrate its power, we could write an XPath expression to convert the sum of the Items to another currency:
>
>    <Total>sum(../Item) * 2.1034</Total>
>
> Or we could write an XPath expression that pulls in data from other documents to compute the total.
>
> Pretty powerful, aye?
>
> Now, write this tool: the input to the tool is a "purchase instance document", such as this:
>
> <Purchase>
>      <Item>10.00</Item>
>      <Item>20.00</Item>
>      <Total>sum(../Item)</Total>
> </Purchase>
>
> The tool assesses the instance document and outputs the results of the assessment.
>
> Ouch!
>
> Assessing the <Item> elements is easy; they just contain decimal values. Assessing the <Total> element is probably impossible since it can contain any arbitrary XPath expression.
>
> That's bad.
>
> XPath is fine if all you want to do is "execute" the XML vocabulary. But if you want to "assess/analyze" your  XML vocabulary then XPath is not fine.
>
> Contrast the above with this XML vocabulary:
>
> Purchase
>     Item: decimal
>     Total
>         SumPrecedingItems
>              Value: decimal
>
> Here's a sample instance document:
>
> <Purchase>
>      <Item>10.00</Item>
>      <Item>20.00</Item>
>      <Total>
>            <SumPrecedingItems>
>                 <Value>30.00</Value>
>            </SumPrecedingItems>
>      </Total>
> </Purchase>
>
> The <Total> element is much less powerful - its content is an element that has the semantics "sum all the preceding <Item> elements."
>
> Now, write a tool in which you give it a "purchase instance document" and it assesses the instance document.
>
> Easy!
>
> Analysis of the XML vocabulary is possible (easy, in fact).
>
> Summary: if an XML vocabulary permits XPath expressions then analysis of the XML vocabulary becomes exceedingly difficult (or impossible).
>
> Comments?
>
> /Roger
>
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