Re: HTTP DELETE operation

On Fri, Jan 14, 2011 at 5:28 AM, Kjetil Kjernsmo <kjetil@kjernsmo.net>wrote:

> Hi!
>
> >
> > "If existing RDF knowledge is modified, either the 200 (OK) or 204 (No
> > Content) response codes SHOULD be sent to indicate successful completion
> of
> > the request [..] If the RDF knowledge identified in the request does not
> > exist in the server, and the operation requires that it does, a 404 (Not
> > Found) response code SHOULD be provided in the response."
> >
> > DELETE requests require the existence of the resource it is addressing,
> so
> > a 404 needs to be returned.
> >
>
> I've seen in SPARQL Update, section 3.2.2., a store that do not record
> empty
> graphs will always return success.
>

To me, "Not found" does not mean failure.  It says the operation has
successfully determined that the resource is not found.  From there the
receiver of the response can conclude that no deletion occurred, which isn't
quite the same as a failed delete operation.  In other words, the requested
delete operation did not occur (properly so, thus success), because the
operation upon which it depends (finding the resource) failed.

In other words, response codes may carry two bits of information, one about
an (abstract) operation and the other about the "meaning" of the operation.
 Maybe the language of the specs could clarify this.

While I'm at it, I should ask:  is this list supposed to serve as a forum
for discussion, or is it only intended as a means for registering public
comments on the drafts?

Cheers,

-Gregg Reynolds