[XML-SIG] XML in Python 1.6 (PROPOSAL)

[Uche Ogbuji]

>   Here's what we came up with:
> 
>   1.  Create a new package in the standard library, with the following
>       structure:
> 
>         xml/
>             dom/
>                 __init__        # provides parse(), parseFile(),
>                                 # and Document
>                 minidom         # Paul's basic DOM 1 + namespaces
>                                 # implementation
>                 ???             # driver to load a DOM from a SAX parser?
>             parsers/
>                 expat           # Python Expat wrapper with namespace
>                                 # support
>             sax/
>                 __init__        # provides parse(), parseFile(), and
>                                 # some classes from the handler module
>                 xmlreader       # used by parser writers
>                 handler         # base classes for handlers
>                 expatreader     # SAX driver for Expat
>                 saxutils        # pretty much the same as now
> 
>       The advantage of using the "xml" name for the package is that
>       most users will be using the most acceptable name.  Additional
>       facilities (XSLT, XPath, 4DOM, etc.) can be added as they
>       stabilize and become widely recognized as "core" in the XML
>       community.

I concur with this.  Though I expressed some concerns about interface, I think 
the non-DOM interfaces are so few and so basic that there should be little 
problem.

Unless someone has done substantial work on a driver to create a DOM from a 
SAX parser (4DOM's won't do as they aren't up to the latest Sax2 yet), I'd say 
we leave this out until Python 1.7.

I guess we'd going to have to re-package 4DOM as xml/dom2 or something to 
avoid clashes.

>   2.  Deal with PyXML -- two options:
>       a.  Rename the base package to something else, "pyxml",
>           "xmlextras", ???.  This was the option Paul & I discussed.
>       b.  Keep the "xml" name but treat it as a "testbed" version only
>           suitable for use by Python+XML development experts.  Not too
>           bad, but not as good I think.

I think we should continue to put all XML things in the xml package.  Why 
muddy the waters?  Why can't the PyXML package just know to add its extras 
into the existing xml package?


-- 
Uche Ogbuji                               Principal Consultant
uche.ogbuji@fourthought.com               +01 303 583 9900 x 101
Fourthought, Inc.                         http://Fourthought.com 
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