Re: [xml-dev] It's too late to improve XML ... lessons learned?

[Marcus Reichardt <u123724@gmail.com>]

Agreeing with Simon in that XML is already a simplified subset of SGML hence SGML has introduced those complexities if there are any.

Also agreeing that non-core specs on top of XML, such as namespaces, is where it has gone wrong.

And that today we're not really focussed on a markup language that can capture all of HTML, markdown, etc, so we haven't really anything to offer to hypertext authors except SGML.

Have a happy new year,
M. Reichardt
sgml.io

> Am 28.12.2021 um 19:10 schrieb Simon St.Laurent <simonstl@simonstl.com>:
> 
> On 12/28/2021 12:44 PM, Roger L Costello wrote:
>> Michael Kay wrote:
>> 
>>> we've learnt as a community that trying to improve XML
>>> doesn't work: the standard is too deeply embedded.
>> Yes, I can see that. On this very list there have been several attempts to improve XML and none of the attempts gained much traction.
> 
> Hmm... SML conversation here led pretty directly to YAML, which definitely has traction.  I think also a large part of the world has effectively subset XML to the simplest well-formed structures they can get away with.  That's not likely a direct result of this list, but it's certainly been a conversation here in the past.
> 
>> So what is the lesson to be learned from this? How about this:
>> 
>>    When creating a new standard, get it right in its
>>      first version because if the standard is a success
>>      you likely won't get a chance to improve it later on.
>> 
>> Is that the lesson to be learned? If so, how to ensure that you "get it right"? For instance, what could the XML Working Group have done differently to get it right? Should the XML Working Group have delayed the release of the XML standard for a year or two until a sizeable group of people had had the opportunity to work with XML and report on its warts?
> 
> I like your lesson, but I don't think most of XML's excessive complexities stem from XML 1.0. (A few do.)  They mostly come from the over-enthusiastic follow-on projects.
> 
> Thanks,
> Simon
> 
> 
> 
> 
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