Replacing std.xml

[Peter Williams]

On 03/09/13 12:40, Lionello Lunesu wrote:
> On 8/29/13 15:25, w0rp wrote:
>> Hello everybody. I've been wondering, what are the current plans to
>> replace std.xml? I'd like to help with the effort to get a final XML
>> library in phobos. So, I have a few questions.
>>
>> First, and most importantly, what do we except out of a D XML library?
>> I'd really like to have a discussion of the form, "Here is exactly the
>> interface the structs/classes need to implement, go forth and
>> implement." The general idea in my mind is "something SAX-like, with
>> something a little DOM-like." I'm aware that std.xml has some issues
>> support different encodings, so obvious that's included.
>>
>> Second, is there an existing library that has gotten close to meeting
>> whatever we need for the first point? If so, how far away is it from
>> being able to meet all of the requirements and become the standard
>> library version?
>
> Having been the lead programmer on the Microsoft XML team for three
> years, I can easily say that the most popular XML API [on MS stack] is
> the XmlReader and XLinq in .NET. (This has nothing to do with LINQ, by
> the way.)
>
> I'd be willing to help make D versions of that, but my time is limited.
> But as usual, I don't think it's the actual coding that will take time.
> Designing a good interface is the hardest part, and I'd consider that
> part done.
>
> L.

For whoever ends up doing std.xml's replacement, it would be good if 
some of the lower level interfaces such as encode/decode (for 
escaping/unescaping within text) were exposed.  I'm finding the ones in 
std.xml useful for implementing markup in label widgets during my 
investigation into reimplementing the GTK+ (modified) interface in D.

Of course, there's always the chance that the new D xml API provides 
enough to make my markup code redundant.  It's possible that the current 
high level APIs in std.xml also provides enough make my work redundant 
but I decided not to investigate this possibility after I saw the "will 
be replaced by something different" warning.

Cheers
Peter