Re: [xml-dev] Make implicit structures explicit

[Michael Kay <mike@saxonica.com>]

On 8 Apr 2014, at 22:44, Frank Manola <fmanola@acm.org> wrote:

> I think designing data structures without any consideration of what they are going to be used for isn't really "design" at all.
> 


Are you talking here about logical design or physical design?

I've always thought that with logical design (conceptual data modelling) it's a very good idea to ignore the expected usage of the data as much as possible - with perhaps one exception, the scoping that decides whether particular information should be included in the model or not.

Usage considerations should only come in at the physical design stage.

Of course, one weakness with XML, especially as a database technology, is that there's not a clean enough separation between the two.

Michael Kay
Saxonica