Re: ERB call on addressing

On Mon, 24 Mar 1997 18:55:21 -0500 Gavin Nicol said:
>> ? - means that the user-agent is to transmit the URL and Xptr to the
>>     server, which is to use the Xptr to extract the desired sub-resource
>>     and transmit it to the user-agent.  In this case, the Xptr must
>>     be preceded by the string "XML-PTR="
>>     e.g.: http://www.xml.com/faq.xml?XML-PTR=ID(A27)
>
>I object strongly to this. I recommed using the ";"
>separator to produce a URL parameter instead of a query
>parameter. This does not add anything else to the already
>overloaded query area, and allows mixed references and queries.
>
>For example:
>
>   http://foo.com/foo.sgml;XML-PTR=ID(A27)?keyword=foo
>
>This is just as easily handled in CGI as anything else, and
>cleanly separates addressing and querying. You can also
>use it with fragment specifications.

Can you (or anyone) give a clear explanation of when and where the
semicolon can be used?  I have read RFC 1738 without becoming clear on
the interrelations of semicolon, question mark, and hash mark.  The
ERB originally wanted to have something to separate the URL proper
from the extended-pointer syntax, which did NOT specify explicitly
whether it was the client or the server which should actually do
the query.  Would semicolon fit that bill?

-Michael Sperberg-McQueen

Received on Monday, 24 March 1997 21:05:30 UTC