n-triples for datatype values [was: Agenda for RDFCore WG Telecon 2002-10-18]

On Thu, 2002-10-17 at 12:35, bwm@hplb.hpl.hp.com wrote:
[...]
> o The n-triples form:
> 
>   <a> <b> <dt1>"foo" .
> 
> requires further parser lookahead than say:
> 
>   <a> <b> "foo"<dt1> .
> 
> The latter is easier to parse.

Oh! yeah verily.

TimBL and I were just discussing that
the other day...

Granted, n-triples is only informally related to N3,
but we do have some relevant implementation experience,
and it would be nice to build on it.

We haven't finished coding up the details,
but he proposed
	"foo"^^<dt1>.

because it harks to his "path" shortcut
for [ <dt1> "foo"], namely "foo"^<dt1>.

We're not particular about ^^ vs some
other delimiter, but having the <dt1>
come after the "foo" makes life much easier
for implementation in cwm.

[[
Paths

These are just shorthand. x!p means [ is p of x ] in the above
annonymous node notaion. You can read it as "x's p". This is a liitle
remiiscent o f the "." in object oriented programming "object.slot"
syntax.

The reverse traversal, x^p means [ p x ] . For either forward or
backward traversal, p is a property, and x can be a whole path with both
! and ^ in it. Any path with at least one traversal is anonymous.

Example:

:joe!fam:mother!loc:office!loc:zip Joe's mother's office's zipcode

:joe!fam:mother^fam:mother Anyone whose mother is Joe's mother.
]]
  -- http://www.w3.org/DesignIssues/Notation3.html


  :albert!fam:mother fam:sister :auntieAnne .
 
  :albert^fam:father fam:sister  :nieceBertha .
	-- http://www.w3.org/2000/10/swap/test/syntax/path1.n3



-- 
Dan Connolly, W3C http://www.w3.org/People/Connolly/

Received on Thursday, 17 October 2002 14:01:10 UTC