Re: [xml-dev] "XML Schema specifies just syntax" versus "XMLSchema speci

[Liam R E Quin <liam@w3.org>]

On Wed, 2011-11-09 at 19:09 +0000, Costello, Roger L. wrote:
> Hi Folks,
> 
> Sally says, "XML Schema specifies just syntax."
> 
> John says, "XML Schema specifies semantics."
> 
> Who is correct?

Neither.

XML Schema Documents can define a grammar for a language that
applications (including people) can imbue with meaning.

The same is true for other syntaxes, such as RDF/Turtle, RDF/N3,
RDF/XML.  The existence of the last of these is a proof that, if RDF can
convey semantics, and if an RDF graph, once transmitted over RDF/XML,
and reconstituted, still has the same semantics, RDF/XML can contain
semantics, and therefore XML can contain semantics (and so can ASCII,
and so can ethernet electrical signals...).

Liam

-- 
Liam Quin - XML Activity Lead, W3C, http://www.w3.org/People/Quin/