[dssslist] On ISO

[Javier Farreres <spanish@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Pavel

The subject title is not trying

> 1. People do not cry out loud about the things that are free and just silently perform. Just no need..
>  
Yes yes, I understand what you mean. I am just wandering why, if there 
are companies working with DSSSL, why are they so quiet. When the 
argument starts, noone sais I work with DSSSL.

> 2. Another reason for XML/XSLT popularity vs SGML/DSSSL is that the fomer pair are readily available (and more or less readable) W3C standards and the second belongs to ISO. To me ISO is a patented cemetery for good technical ideas for 2 reaons:
> 2.1. Its pricing and copyright policies make the standards hardly affordable to the students, who are IMHO one of themain workhorse of the technical progress.
> 2.2. The ISO's passion to perfection makes the standards hardly readable even for the seasoned practitioners.
>  
I think I must agree. I didn't know all these things until I got the 
DSSSL book published. We had to contact ISO for publishing rights. 
Although I copied no part of it, some isolated paragraphs were so well 
written in the standard that I couldn't think of a better explanation 
but the standard one. They asked for a mad quantity of money, which 
obliged me to remove a bunch of paragraphs from the book.

But, on the other hand, I think ISO is a more reliable source, when we 
talk about international standards, than W3C. But I am perhaps wrong on 
this.

Javi