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At 11:09 PM -0500 11/8/03, Karl Waclawek wrote:


>Yes, XML/SAX is about text, but one can abstract out
>the more general concepts and apply them differently.
>Maybe its just a turf war about names.
>Why not call it BinSAX then, or similar?


It should at most be a turf war about names. Regrettably, it isn't. I 
am not arguing against a new format and API for streaming binary 
data. I am arguing against a harmful effort to force XML and SAX to 
accept binary data. If people find a need for Binary Data Language 
(BDL) and Streaming/Simple API for Data (SAD), please feel free to 
invent. Of course, it would only be sensible to learn from the 
experience of SAX when creating this.

But please don't corrupt SAX or XML in the process. You've got a new 
data format here that is not XML, and there's no reason you have to 
bloat XML APIs with support for this new format. I also ask that the 
designers not call their new format or APIs anything that reminds 
people of XML. That is, don't use the names SAX, XML, DOM, Xerces, 
etc. This merely confuses developers. Let the formats, APIs, etc. 
stand or fall on their own merits without trying to bask in the XML 
glory.

-- 

   Elliotte Rusty Harold
   elharo@m...
   Effective XML (Addison-Wesley, 2003)
   http://www.cafeconleche.org/books/effectivexml
   http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN%3D0321150406/ref%3Dnosim/cafeaulaitA

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