[topicmapmail] Embedding XTM Was: XTM Datatypes

[W. Eliot Kimber]

Anthony B. Coates wrote:

> Murray has made the point that it is not hard to extract a valid XTM document
> from such a mixed document.  What would be very useful is a formal process for
> this, so that there was a well understood way that such an extracted XTM
> document would refer back to the general XML content in its original mixed
> source document. 

I think that everything needed to do this exists today. That is, there 
should be no difficulty processing an XML document to instantiate the 
abstract topic maps defined by the TopicMap elements within it such that 
the resourceRef pointers used in the abstraction continue to point to 
the original XML document, which would, of course, be unchanged and 
continue to be addressible (e.g., by URL and XPointer).

There is no need for an XTM processor to literally copy the data 
referenced by resourceRef--it can simply resolve the references as 
needed. It does, I suppose, require that XTM processors be able to deal 
efficiently with XML data in general, but there is, of course, ample 
infrastructure for doing that today.

Cheers,

E.
-- 
W. Eliot Kimber, eliot@isogen.com
Consultant, ISOGEN International

1016 La Posada Dr., Suite 240
Austin, TX  78752 Phone: 512.656.4139