Re: Meta Data Redux

Yaron Goland wrote:
| Terry Allen - I am actually a big believer in XML. However, while I do
| believe that leveraging XML would make for a great meta-data system, I

I suggested nothing of the sort.

| do not believe that this group should deal with that issue. There are a

Nor that either.

| lot of arguments on both sides and I do not believe that the win for
| this group is sufficiently large to justify the group's investment of
| time. Many groups have attempted to solve the generic meta-data problem,
| the current proposals I am familiar with include: XML, Web Collections

XML is not an attempt to solve the generic metadata (one word) problem,
and in fact that group is shying away from facing the issue.

| (sub-setting XML), Warwick Framework, MIMEDIR, and PICS. I am sure you
| can imagine what life will be like if this group tries to pick a winner.
| I say we do the minimum needed for interoperability, declare victory,
| and publish the standard. =)

I concurred with Ron in approbating multipart/related.  On the basis
of precisely parallel issues that have arisen in the XML discussion,
I think the minimum structure required to relate metadata and documents
is something like multipart/related.  As MIME is an existing, implemented
technology, it makes sense to use it.  Alternately, you can define the
semantics necessary to use multipart/related or any other syntax, and
let implementors try out various syntaxes.

 

Regards,
  Terry Allen    Electronic Publishing Consultant    tallen[at]sonic.net
       specializing in Web publishing, SGML, and the DocBook DTD 
                   http://www.sonic.net/~tallen/
  A Davenport Group Sponsor:  http://www.ora.com/davenport/index.html

Received on Wednesday, 19 March 1997 11:24:56 UTC