Re: [xml-dev] XML's greatest cultural advantage over JSON

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

On 4/28/13 9:00 AM, David Lee wrote:
> I am not trying to lead a revolution and lead people to "The True
> Way". What I am trying to do in my small way, in bits and pieces, is
> to dispel myth and enlighten misconceptions one tiny grain at a
> time. or atleast opine.    But I have no illusions of grandeur that I
> am a leader of an army.   That would be truely arrogant and foolish.

No, you're a border guard, defending the XML turf against those strange 
upstarts.  You'll let their data in, if and only if it plays by your 
rules.  (Which is completely and deeply an XML attitude in any case...)

> However ... Looking towards the future the playing field is changing
> underneath *everyone*.  like it or not. More and more data that
> people and companies want to manipulate is becoming more complex.
> More "document like" than ever before.   I do see that as the niche
> where XML was king (and still is King ) aka in document modeling, is
> starting to grow.  Grow not like a slow oak but like weeds overtaking
> the world.

I mostly live in documents.  These problems are growing, but I don't see 
a lot people eagerly reaching out for XML.  In fact, I see a lot of 
strange solutions that go out of their way to avoid XML - at the very 
least, they go out of their way to avoid exposing anyone resembling a 
customer to XML.

I don't see a lot of people (anyone?) proposing JSON as a document 
solution, but I do see a wide variety of not-angle-brackets markup, 
microformats, and other forms creeping in.  There's also a lot of work 
going on in applications that don't have "documents" per se but a lot of 
interlinked information that might look like documents to their users.

The pile of documents is growing rapidly.  Interest in XML for document 
processing is growing at much smaller rate, if it's growing at all.

> And business and government is starting to want to get a
> grip on it .... and its damn hard.

Always has been, always will be.  I think we can agree on that.

> Just like Relational Databases are
> starting to outlive their usefulness, so are simple data models. So
> perhaps eventually the hordeas and masses will reach a point when
> they discover the simple models simply dont work well enough for them
> and they will need more complex models to handle the data they are
> being forced to handle. They might bring them back to XML ... Or it
> might bring something new and grand.  Or it might be JSON becoming as
> complicated as XML. who knows.   But I don't see the JSON of today
> handling the majority of data of tomorrow.  Or even today. Or we will
> see a bifurcation much like we have today where some models are used
> for some things and some for others. There doesnt need to be One True
> Way.    Religions don't need to be dismantled,  people will learn to
> live with their religion or realize it doesnt work for them anymore.
> But if people are going to choose a religion, I would like to do my
> microscopic part at attempting to put some objective light on the
> subject.   As objective as I can be from MY island.
>
> My view from my island.  Where I see the world differently then you.

Your island isn't growing.  In fact, it isn't even an island, but a 
dwindling peninsula.  Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings.

Good luck!

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