Re: Use of punctuation in a language?

Herbert hsauro@cs.caltech.edu
Date: 10/31/03 10:59 PM EST


asks


<<
Does anyone have any comments on the use of punctucation is (in) a
language, ... for the exchange of models in
molecular biology, we have an XML based one, but know we'd like a
human readable one.
>>


XML is hard to read perhaps for a number of reasons. The rigid need
for begin and end tags, and the tendency of the medium to drive the
interface designer into numerous layers of structure.


No doubt, in your successful work so far you also have a bit of
structure that is just the irreducible surface of your information
interchange design.


You will have to mark that structure with puctuation or keywords (or
as commented effectively here already, with indentation or even with
sequence). The surface of the exchange must reveal atleast that much
structure.


Even the earliest know artifacts of human information technology show
a mix of content expression and markup.


A better way to look at this is modern tools which are now cheap and
readily available. Use highlighting in some kind of presentation IDE
to amplify the structural elements. Tie all input to a processing
editor that knows the XML rules. Build on your success so far.


Best Wishes,
Bob Rayhawk
RKRayhawk@aol.com

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