- From: Charles F. Goldfarb <Charles@SGMLsource.com>
- Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 14:08:37 GMT
- To: "W. Eliot Kimber" <kimber@passage.com>
- Cc: W3C SGML Working Group <w3c-sgml-wg@w3.org>
Michael Sperberg-McQueen wrote:
>(Using the same syntax for declarations and instances cuts the size of
>the grammar approximately in half. It also reflects a firm belief that
>structured information belongs in SGML documents.)
I believe in the second sentence, but the first one sounds like a red herring to
me, because:
1. The implementation code isn't cut in half, or anything like it. You still
have to process the semantics of the declarations.
2. The grammar may be reduced, but now you have to define and document a DTD.
3. Most users, and many experts, have trouble distinguishing tags, from
elements, from element types. If we use elements to define elements, the
confusion will only get worse.
--
Charles F. Goldfarb * Information Management Consulting * +1(408)867-5553
13075 Paramount Drive * Saratoga CA 95070 * USA
International Standards Editor * ISO 8879 SGML * ISO/IEC 10744 HyTime
Prentice-Hall Series Editor * CFG Series on Open Information Management
--
Received on Tuesday, 24 September 1996 10:06:22 UTC