comicmaster-cml-talk

[Guido S. <wa...@gm...>]

Hi,
I am a bit surprised to actually find subscribers here. :-)

First, why have I created this mailing list, and what it is for. The 
reason for this list is that I am writing a comic reader/comic 
database, but I am too lazy to actually fill my own database. So why not 
let others work for me? 

Nah, I am not that bad. I thought that surely I am not the only one writing
such a beast. But if others do the same, why not trying to be compatible?

A comic does not have that much important variables. It has a publisher, 
a volume number, an issue number, one or more titles etc.

So it should not be too difficult to create an xml file, which contains all
those informations in an implementation independant format. So if a file 
containing such an xml structure is added to all comic archives, most 
readers should be able to get all the important informations to display with 
the comic, or to update the local database.

Unfortunately this mailing list was not good accepted. I created it, because 
not everyone is registered at Z-Cult or Mutant Liberation Front. And I thought
it would be better to have a common discussion forum, than have to jump 
from forum to forum.

That is the reason for this mailing list. But why a new xml format anyways?
Aren't there any alreasy out there? Hardly believable that I am the first one
with this idea. Actually there is a very interesting project here on 
Sourcforge: http://sourceforge.net/projects/testimony/
It can export data in an xml format. Why not take this?

Me and some others think it is a bit too 'heavy'. Currently one of our team 
(Mattbooty from ZCult) is working on somthing like a CDDB for comics. A hash
of a comic archive is created in a certain way, sent to a server and as 
a result the most vital informations are received in such an xml format. 
We want to keep the data sent over the net as lean and concise as 
possible.


How far is the project gone now? Not that far, actually we just cleared some
misunderstandings. We are still fighting a bit (in a good way) what comes
into the file. But for the first time a general agreement seems to possible.


Currently it looks like something close to that will happen:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<y-cult>
  <serie_info>
     <BookName>Action Comics</BookName>
     <Publisher>DC</Publisher>
     <CountryCode>US</CountryCode>
     <LanguageCode>en</LanguageCode>
     <foreign key="gcd>0815</foreign>
  </serie_info>
  <issue_info>
     <note>What ever</note>
     <Number>400</Number>
     <date>iso-date</date>
     <credit role="scanner">xxxx</credit>
     <credit role="distributor">yyyy</credit>
     <foreign key="gcd">0815a</foreign>
     <Sequence number="1">
       <Title>My Son... Is He Man or Beast?</Title>
       <Credit Role="Pencils">Curt Swan</Credit>
       <Credit Role="Inks">Murphy Anderson</Credit>
       <Credit Role="Script">Leo Dorfman</Credit>
       <Credit Role="Colorist">xxx</Credit>
       <Credit Role="Letterer">xxx</Credit>
       <Credit Role="Editor">xxx</Credit>
       <note>Note 1 for story 1</note>
       <note>Note 2 for story 2</note>
       </Sequence>
      <Sequence number="2">
         <Title>Duel of Doom!</Title>
         <Credit Role="Pencils">Curt Swan</Credit>
         <Credit Role="Inks">Murphy Anderson</Credit>
         <Credit Role="Script">Leo Dorfman (as Geoff Brown)</Credit>
         <Credit Role="Colorist">xxx</Credit>
         <Credit Role="Letterer">xxx</Credit>
         <Credit Role="Editor">xxx</Credit>
         <note>Note 1 for story 1</note>
         <note>Note 2 for story 2</note>
     </Sequence>
  </issue_info>
</y-cult>

Still above schema is by far not a sure thing now (and the names of the nodes 
even less), e.g. we currently discussing whether a custom node is necessary, 
i.e. a node for concrete programs. I don't like the idea (though I initially 
proposed it), contradicts a little the lean and concise paradigm. But I am
always open for arguments.