Re: [xsl] What's your visual metaphor for XSL Transformations?

Subject: Re: [xsl] What's your visual metaphor for XSL Transformations?
From: "Robert Koberg" <rob@xxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 19:28:14 -0400
On Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:15:00 -0400, Dimitre Novatchev <dnovatchev@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

On 3/22/07, Robert Koberg <rob@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
uff... I can't resist. I open my legs to ridicule:

I think using XSL on XML is like sailing (Sax is like surfing) -- that is
my imagining -- at least it helps me :). You basically do what you can
given the water (standards), wind (XML) your boat (XSL) - but you still
have to get to your destination.

A few things:


  1. There is no need to have any source XML document.
      http://www.w3.org/TR/xslt20/#initiating

whatev... seriously, do you consider this an arguement? How do you transform nothing?



2. There is no need to "get to your destination". You may be producing results non-stop all the time and they may be used by consumers (say in a pipeline) as soon as a new result appears. Here by "result" it is good to mean anyone of the possibly unlimited number of final result trees that the XSLT 2.0 Recommendation allows a transformation to produce (for example using <xsl:result-document ... /> instructions) http://www.w3.org/TR/xslt20/#element-result-document

do you still need to get to your destination? Or do you prefer spinning your wheels but making alot of smoke and noise?


A destination may be a 'way station' or 'crossing a buoy', but you have to get there before you can proceed.

Perhaps think of the lesser known Xeno who says before you can get to your destination you must get to the half-way point. Before you can get to the half way point you must get to its half way point and so on.

Oh sorry, this is different - I suppose, like the thread.


3. A good tail-recursive implementation can guarantee that "unlimited-stack-depth" recursion will be performed naturally without any problems such as "stack overflow"

umm.., so?



4. It is not an absolute requirement for such a transformation to access an "infinite data structure" although if necessary such access can be implemeted using a "on-demand", or a "partially produced" one using a lazy evaluation approach.

well... you have brought in this "infinite date structure" which exists in your mind, so ...?






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