XML and namespaces

[Alan Kennedy]

[Alan Kennedy]
>>Don't confuse libxml2dom with libxml2.

[Paul Boddie]
> Well, quite, but perhaps you can explain what I'm doing wrong with this
> low-level version of the previously specified code:

Well, if your purpose is to make a point about minidom and DOM standards 
compliance in relation to serialisation of namespaces, then what you're 
doing wrong is to use a library that bears no relationship to the DOM to 
make your point.

Think about it this way: Say you decide to create a new XML document 
using a non-DOM library, such as the excellent ElementTree.

So you make a series of ElementTree-API-specific calls to create the 
document, the elements, attributes, namespaces, etc, and then serialise 
the whole thing.

And the end result is that you end up with a document that looks like this

"""
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<href xmlns="DAV:"/>
"""

It is not possible to use that ElementTree code to make inferences on 
how minidom should behave, because the syntax and semantics of the 
minidom API calls and the ElementTree API calls are different.

Minidom is constrained to implement the precise semantics of the DOM 
APIs, because it claims standards compliance.

ElementTree is free to do whatever it likes, e.g. be pythonic, because 
it has no standard to conform to: it is designed solely according to the 
experience and intuition of its author, who is free change it at any 
stage if he feels like it.

s/ElementTree/libxml2/g

If I've completely missed your point and you were talking something else 
entirely, please forgive me. I'd be happy to help with any questions if 
I can.

-- 
alan kennedy
------------------------------------------------------
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