[topicmapmail] Announcement of XML Schema for ISO 13250 Topic Maps

[Patrick Durusau]

Martin,

I think your posts would be more useful to the list if you could avoid
statements like:

>
> What I am also trying to point out to people is that XTM is only a stop gap,
> and a relatively inefficient one at that. You should be aware that its not
> just XTM I am complaining about, but RDF, which is also not efficient enough
> for the long-term management of semantics.
>

>From the posts on this topic it appears that you are committed to using
non-standard element names (in the XTM sense) for your topic maps. That hardly
justifies calling XTM "stop gap" or "relatively inefficient." XTM reflects a
choice to make certain aspects of XML based topic maps standard, which will
promote interchange and building a base of knowledgeable topic map
authors/users.

Creating topic maps that reflect a particular understanding of what element
names users should use is a design choice with which I strongly disagree. Having
said that, it does not mean that your topic maps are less efficient (for
internal use anyway) than more standard XTM topic maps.

The point is that I would prefer that you state what objections you have to XTM
without name calling or assuming that "efficient enough for the long-term
management of semantics" is a meaningful statement without more information.

>
> One last statement for you all to argue about (not aimed at you  Murray!).
> If it is the feeling of the members of this list that the only XML-based
> approach to topic maps can be XTM then I suggest you immediately change the
> inaccurate name of this mailing list and make it clear it is the XTMmail
> list and not a general purpose list for promoting the use of topic maps.
>

Speaking only for myself, not the XTM Authoring Group or my employer (SBL), I
think this list is the appropriate place for the discussion of XML based
approaches to topic maps. That is, afterall, what the XTM effort is working to
produce. But that discussion is not advanced by cute remarks about this list or
the work product of the XTM group.

As I noted in an earlier post, your work on the Schema for ISO 13250
(http://www.diffuse.org/TopicMaps/schema.html) is an impressive piece of work.
Perhaps you could offer some illustrations of its use versus comparable
instances of XTM? That I would find useful and interesting.

Patrick

--
Patrick Durusau
Director of Research and Development
Society of Biblical Literature
pdurusau@emory.edu