Re: A28: syntax of markup declarations?

At 06:20 PM 10/7/96 -0400, Steven R. Newcomb wrote:

I think I've said my piece on the main issues here.  But there is one Steve Newcomb's statements that I *must* challenge:

>  As information management professionals, I
>can't see any way we can recommend XML to our clients unless their
>information assets -- and our clients themselves -- are already in the
>realm of SGML:

If this is true, we're wasting our time.  The main benefit of XML is that it might well expand - immensely - the number of people who are using descriptive markup and standardized formats, instead of presentational/mongrel markup and proprietary formats.  I personally plan to recommend XML, vociferously, to the Web publishing population, when they hit the HTML brick wall, and the document management profession, when they get tired of dealing with documents that are opaque proprietary bit blobs.

XML is the easy on-ramp to SGML.

If we go on preaching to the existing SGML choir, why bother doing this?


Cheers, Tim Bray
tbray@textuality.com http://www.textuality.com/ +1-604-488-1167

Received on Monday, 7 October 1996 19:27:32 UTC