Re: Fwd: [xml-dev] Not using mixed content? Then don't use XML

["Simon St.Laurent" <simonstl@simonstl.com>]

On 4/6/13 5:46 AM, Timothy W. Cook wrote:
> My impression is that a VERY large percentage of the contributors here
> are involved in text management; not application development.

The document-data divide is important in many conversations, but I don't 
think it applies to this one particularly.

My point, at least, is that schema-first or schema-centric design, any 
situation in which the schema is considered more than a snapshot of 
current conversational practice, is actively harmful.

It doesn't matter whether than schema uses a DTD, XML Schema, RELAX NG, 
Examplotron, or even some other form.  I think XML Schema and the 
toolset surrounding it encourage more serious problems to develop, 
problems we often ignore by calling them features.  However, these 
issues are hardly unique to XML Schema or to given fields of markup 
application.

I'll be writing more on this soon, and hope to have a more coherent 
telling of the story than I've had so far.

>  From a developer point of view I love the additions to XML Schema 1.1.
>    Now I can use XML, stay in one family of tools and perform
> computational processing across data.  But until 1.1, XML was just a
> pain to move around, parse the data back out and do something
> meaningful.
>
> So, before you go bashing on XML Schema, just admit that it might no
> be useful for you.  That doesn't mean it is bad or not useful to
> others.

Unfortunately, when an epidemic is raging, the behavior of everyone 
around us matters.

Thanks,
-- 
Simon St.Laurent
http://simonstl.com/