Re: RIF Minutes for 21-Aug-07-rif-minutes.html

>>>> Axel: Strings with @ signs in RDF - will this be OK in the proposed 
>>>> format for such literals?
>> The original proposal was that the text type is a pair of lexical form 
>> and language code. The XML syntax would use attributes for the language 
>> code as normal. For the presentation syntax (but see below) I'd suggest 
>> following N3/Turtle:
>>
>>             "string"@lang
>>
>> which would correspond to the literal value ("string", lang)^^rif:text.
> 
> For uniformity of the syntax, it is better to use "string@lang"^^...
> where @ is special (i.e., needs to be escaped, if one wants to include it
> in the string. 
> By the way, why can't we use xsd:string data type for these?

Because, in this case, it would be impossible to distinguish between
strings with a '@', and strings with a language tag.

> 
>>>> Jos: this is also a need to ask the XML schema group re such literal 
>>>> handling
>> Exactly, and we should wait until we have their comments before 
>> finalizing this part.
>>
>>>> Chris: 4 syntaxes in use: presentation + XML, ASN and "formal"
>> I've been meaning to raise this. That does seem rather a lot.
>>
>> The original argument for the presentation syntax was that it was needed 
>> to enable the semantics to be clearly presented. The bulk of the 
>> document now uses the formal syntax for this purpose.
>>
>> Do we still need the presentation syntax as well?
> 
> The presentation syntax is basically the same as the formal syntax. We just
> give a BNF for it.

The current document (posted conditions) defines a formal syntax which
uses the common mathematical notation  you find in textbooks in the
definition of well formed formulas, but the uses the concrete syntax
(the one for which the BNF is given) in other places.  These are two
different syntaxes.

Best, Jos

> 
> 
> 	--michael  
> 
> 
>> Dave
>> -- 
>> Hewlett-Packard Limited
>> Registered Office: Cain Road, Bracknell, Berks RG12 1HN
>> Registered No: 690597 England
>>
>>
> 
> 
> 

-- 
Jos de Bruijn            debruijn@inf.unibz.it
                      http://www.debruijn.net/
----------------------------------------------
As far as the laws of mathematics refer to
reality, they are not certain; and as far as
they are certain, they do not refer to
reality.
  -- Albert Einstein