[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: XML only for data exchange ?

On Sat, 20 Jan 2001, Kevin S. Clarke wrote:
> Hi, Gerd wrote:
> 
> >Some of you wrote that XML is only an exchange format but not a storage
> >format. Why ? E.g. if I would develop an article database for a newspaper
> >or library software to store the whole work of Shakespeare, why not using
> >XML as data format ? I think we all agree that plain files are not suitable
> >here. Should I use an RDBMS ? I doubt. What left IMHO is an XML database.
> 
> I agree with this.  I hear often that XML is only a transport method, but I 
> think this comes from the assumption that all one's resources are 
> data-centric.  There is a lot of document-centric information out there for 
> which XML is a good storage format.  We are investigating Ozone as a 
> database for a homegrown integrated library system.  One of the things that 
> attracted us is its ability to handle both data-centric (Java objects) and 
> document-centric (XMLContainers) resources.  This hybrid approach is a 
> really nice feature (and the ability to ouput the objects as XML is an 
> extra plus... XML as an exchange format has its place too).
> 
> Library information consists of item records and user data that is probably 
> better stored in and retrieved from an object-oriented database (or an 
> RDBMS), but it also consists of bibliographic records which are really 
> document-centric.  Traditionally, libraries have put bibliographic records 
> in a BLOB in the database (where the structure is lost) but with XML there 
> is the option to store these in a way that their inherent structure doesn't 
> go to waste.  With this approach, we do not have to choose which elements 
> of a record are indexed and made available to the public.   We also have 
> greater flexibility when integrating library specific information in with 
> other document-centric sources from the Web (XHTML).
> 
> XML, in my opinion, has a place in both the storage and transfer of 
> specific types of resources...

I perfectly agree.


Falko
-- 
______________________________________________________________________
Falko Braeutigam                              mailto:falko@smb-tec.com
SMB GmbH                                        http://www.smb-tec.com