Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 15:20:37 -0800 From: Bakul Shah <bakul@bitblocks.com> To: Dag-Erling Smorgrav <des@ofug.org> Cc: Garrett Wollman <wollman@lcs.mit.edu>, Wes Peters <wes@softweyr.com>, arch@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: syslog.conf syntax change (multiple program/host specifications) Message-ID: <200302122320.SAA25721@rodney.cnchost.com> In-Reply-To: Your message of "Wed, 12 Feb 2003 22:12:49 %2B0100." <xzpof5hi4oe.fsf@flood.ping.uio.no>
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> > Rather than repeat all the arguments I'll point you to what
> > knowledgeable people like Erik Naggum have to say about XML
> > (search comp.lang.lisp on groups.google.com). Naggum used to
> > be a strong proponent of SGML until he "saw the light"! A
> > couple of recent thread on XML on comp.lang.lisp are worth
> > browsing.
>
> Erik Naggum may be knowledgeable, but he's not what I would call
> well-balanced. I wouldn't rely too much on his opinion about anything
> if I were you.
Are you impugning his sanity? I wonder what your fellow
Norwegian would have to say about that:-) And people who
spend more than 8 hours a day on FreeBSD are well-balanced?
[No, don't answer that!]
What I suggested was to look at the arguments Naggum & others
have made (and, implicitly, to make up your own mind).
Naggum can be quite vitriolic and unreasonable sometimes but
pay attention to his technical posts and he actually makes a
lot of sense. But not just him. Read the threads. A number
of people who have used XML feel the same way about it and
their arguments are worth listening to before believing any
XML promises.
<anecdote>
For a while I considered using gnucash. With its help I
converted my Quicken data file into gnucash'es XML form.
About 6400 transactions (needing 550K in Quicken's QIF
format) now need 7.5M of XML. But it is not just the
fat. See for yourself just how ugly it is! Here is QIF of
one transaction:
D11/29' 1
U-36.90
T-36.90
PWhole Foods Market
LGroceries
^
Here is XML for the same transaction.
<gnc:transaction version="2.0.0">
<trn:id type="guid">2913d199bca3e6c43b85228899213a4b</trn:id>
<trn:date-posted>
<ts:date>2001-11-29 00:00:00 -0800</ts:date>
</trn:date-posted>
<trn:date-entered>
<ts:date>2002-04-07 16:08:20 -0700</ts:date>
<ts:ns>277267000</ts:ns>
</trn:date-entered>
<trn:description>Whole Foods Market</trn:description>
<trn:splits>
<trn:split>
<split:id type="guid">328f86287462647246e7ce838024d992</split:id>
<split:reconciled-state>n</split:reconciled-state>
<split:value>3690/100</split:value>
<split:quantity>3690/100</split:quantity>
<split:account type="guid">ddc3123d65cd99a12efe4820e16c0c71</split:account>
</trn:split>
<trn:split>
<split:id type="guid">981232fbcaf55580985ce6e20f6734b6</split:id>
<split:reconciled-state>n</split:reconciled-state>
<split:value>-3690/100</split:value>
<split:quantity>-3690/100</split:quantity>
<split:account type="guid">588f87861f4538b62734a3b7301bacef</split:account>
</trn:split>
</trn:splits>
</gnc:transaction>
Human readable? Riiiight. Can they have done better?
Probably. But they didn't. When I saw the above, Frank
Zappa's Valley Girl lyrics immedieately came to mind:
It's like GRODY...
GRODY TO THE MAX
I'm sure
It's like really nauseating
Like BARF OUT
GAG ME WITH A SPOON
GROSS
I am SURE
TOTALLY...
(alas, it loses its impact in print -- you have to listen to the song)
</anecdote>
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