[exprla-devel] SOME IDEAS

[reid_spencer <ras...@re...>]

--- In xpl-dev@y..., Robert A Hopkins <p061949c@p...> wrote:
I was fiddling around with the idea of an xml language and these are 
some 
ideas I had on what it might look like. Does any of this look at all 
like 
anything any of you had in mind? (Note resemblance to QBasic.)


<?xml version="1.0" xmlns:xpl="http://www.w3.org/something/or/other/"?
>
<xpl xmlns:xpl="http://www.w3.org/hoopla/about/xpl/">
  <!--Declare some constants.-->
  <xpl:constant-declaration>
    <xpl:constant name="qwerty" type="string">flagrent</xpl:constant>
    <xpl:constant name="pi" type="number">3.14168</xpl:constant>
    <xpl:constant name="gotAsparagus" 
type="boolean">true</xpl:constant>
  </xpl:constant-declaration>
  <!--Or maybe this way:-->
  <!--This is better. The constant is an element which contains a 
value.-->
  <xpl:constant-declaration>
    <qwerty type="string">flagrent</qwerty>
    <pi type="number">3.14168</pi>
    <gotAsparagus type="boolean">true</gotAsparagus>
  </xpl:constant-declaration>
  <!--Let's put some values into the variables "rows" & "columns".-->
  <xpl:input src="keyboard" type="integer">rows</xpl:input>
  <xpl:input src="keyboard" type="integer">columns</xpl:input>
  <!--Create a complex type to store coordinates within a grid and a 
boolean value representing a light turned on or off.-->
  <xpl:dimension>
    <!--I'm not entirely happy with "1 to rows" etc.-->
    <xpl:dataType name="lights" xpl:dimension-1="1 to rows" 
xpl:dimension-2="1 to columns">
      <lights>
        <xpl:data name="x" type="integer"/>
        <xpl:data name="y" type="integer"/>
        <xpl:data name="onOff" type="boolean"/>
      </lights>
    </xpl:dataType>
  </xpl:dimension>
  <!--Only one general type of loop is needed. Needs an attribute 
like 
xpl:counter="??"-->
  <!--Loops need work.-->
  <xpl:loop>
    <xpl:exit-before/>
    <xpl:exit-loop/>
  </xpl:loop>
  <!--Let's create a general-purpose conditional form. Is there a 
fundamental difference between "if...then" & "select...case"? Why not 
use 
exactly the same form for all conditional statements.-->
  <xpl:input src="keyboard" type="string">tgif</xpl:input>
  <!--A string entered from the keyboard is assigned to the variable 
"tgif".-->
  <xpl:if xpl:argument="tgif" xpl:test="boolean">
    <xpl:case>Thursday<isTgif>false</isTgif></xpl:case>
    <xpl:case>Saturday<xpl:output xpl:where-to="screen">Too 
late!</xpl:output></xpl:case>
    <xpl:case>Friday<isTgif>true</isTgif><xpl:output 
xpl:where-to="screen">Thangodd!</xpl:output><!--In the last case both 
the 
isTgif and the xpl:output elments are contained within the xpl:case 
element, so both are output when the value of tgif is found to be 
"Friday"--></xpl:case>
  </xpl:if>
  <!--Or this form:-->
  <xpl:if xpl:argument="lights{rows.columns}.x">
    <xpl:case 
xpl:operator="greater-than">75<lights
{rows.columns}.onOff>false</lights{rows.columns}.onOff></xpl:case>
  </xpl:if>
  <!--Now for an equation:-->
  <!--Rather than use the form "area=expression", I think that a 
variable 
element enclosing or containing a function which returns a value is 
better xml.-->
  <!--Not particularly easier to read, though.-->
  <xpl:input src="keyboard" type="number">radius</xpl:input>
  <area>pi * radius ^ 2</area>
  <xpl:output xpl:where-to="screen">area</xpl:output>
  <!--Brainstorm! How about using an xsl stylesheet to control output 
to 
the screen, to a file, even to a com port?-->
  <xpl:output xpl:where-to="screen">Hell, oh world!</xpl:output>
  <xpl:wait-a-sec xpl:until="true">
    <xpl:until xpl:string="uppercase">Q</xpl:until>
  </xpl:wait-a-sec>
  <xpl:end-program/>
</xpl>


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