From: jbritt@...
Date: 2003-03-19T16:41:50+09:00
Subject: Re: XML too hard (YAML opportunity?)

> Ah...the key is that you do not design the data file...this is an XML
> thing.  The to_yaml method creates the format off your object model.

So, rather than chose a confg file format that is easiest for my users, I
write an app and just live withever what falls out?  That can't be right.

 action: "snip"

> it's an integer.  If later I decide that floats are better and want
> > change
> > my
> > code, don't the older data files have to be rewritten?
>
> Actually, what will happen is a Hash will be created with a key
> ("some_key") and the value(23).  If you change to floats, the Hash will
> have the key ("some_key") and the value(23.0).  It all depends on your
> use of these objects as to whether this will fail.  But this is the
> same for XML too.  If you have a parser that expects a certain format
> in the value of an attribute like:
>
> some_num="23"
>
> and then do:
>
> some_num="23.0"
>
> you have to update your parser.

Well, no, I update the business logic that uses string values returned
from the XML parser.


> If you update it, will it break with
> old files?  How long does your parser read the old format and convert
> to the new?
>
> >
> >
> >>   Oh, and did I say that YAML files are readable?
> >
> > You did, but I'm not always seeing that when I read the YAML spec.
> >
>
> And XML specs are readable???...I was talking about the YAML content,

So was I.  Reading the spec, and looking at the examples, I get the
inmpression
that once you get past foo: bar examples YAML can be a bit gnarly.

But, again, I need to use it more.

> not specification.  The YAML library deals with the spec.  I write Ruby
> code and let it emit and parse it.

Same for XML.


James