Technoology (for whom) ??
[1/4] from: reffy:ulrich at: 22-Oct-2002 17:07
Hi List,
I used to enjoy reading technoology books "for the common man" ...
I would love to share the following from Microsoft's "XML Pocket Consultant"
A fast-answers guide to XML technologies and standards
Provides quick-reference tables, lists, step-by-step instructions, and code samples
I like the book, it is physically small and can be carted to a coffee shop without hernia-ville
...
Now, like most everyone on the list, I am reading this XML stuff because I fancy myself
as someone who enjoys TRYING to keep up with what is happening in the techno world ...
Passing Parameter Values to Templates
<xsl:template name="SquareOrRectangleArea">
<xsl:param name="width" />
<xsl:param name="height" />
<xsl:value-of select="$width * $height" />
</xsl:template>
Now, to invoke the function that was just defined:
<xsl:call-template name="SquareOrRectangleArea">
<xsl:with-param name="width" select="10" />
<xsl:with-param name="height" select="20" />
</xsl:call-template>
The resulting output from this template call is:
200
Now, can't we just see the smile on this Author's face at getting this into the book?
Of course, he had a typo, which I corrected for our benefit.
And, I have been wanting to learn this stuff??? I must have lost it somewhere along the
way!!
Who is all of this new techno stuff for?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Define a function
Define r Is SquareOrRectangleArea wh { r Is */ wh }
Now, to invoke the function that was just defined:
SquareOrRectangleArea 10 20
200
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I agree with Petr and Scott ... where are we, and where are we headed????
Assume that */ is a reduction operation, reducing the rank of the right argument
by 1, by inserting * in between the elements to yield a product. This yields a single
number in the case of a vector of numbers, and would yield row products if the right
argument is a matrix. If desired, the coordinate may be specified along which the operation
will take place. So *[1]/ would operate along the first coordinate to yield column
products, etc.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can probably figure out what +/ 10 20 30 would yield?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am not sure if I should be impressed that any particular browser can read and execute
XML, XSL, XSLT, FO, XPATH, etc.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I often wonder, what if some other language instead of HTML had gotten there first, what
would it be like to code up a web page?
Cheers,
Dick
[2/4] from: jan::skibinski::sympatico::ca at: 22-Oct-2002 19:27
Hi Dick,
> And, I have been wanting to learn this stuff??? I must have lost it somewhere along
the way!!
> Who is all of this new techno stuff for?
The attempts of computating in XML look indeed quite
awkward. But if you think of XML as a declarative language,
XML files as declarative programs and XSLT as program
transformation techniques, the "new techno stuff" trends seem
quite interesting and challenging. Here are two pointers to last
year articles about XML and Functional Programming
(FP languages are part of the "declarative" category).
http://www.xml.com/lpt/a/2001/02/14/functional.html
http://gnosis.cx/publish/programming/xml_models_fp.html
The first one even mention Rebol in passing. :-)
I've been using some of the tools mentioned there,
for better or for worse.
Jan
[3/4] from: reffy:ulrich at: 22-Oct-2002 19:30
> > And, I have been wanting to learn this stuff??? I must have lost it somewhere along
the way!!
> > Who is all of this new techno stuff for?
>
> The attempts of computating in XML look indeed quite
> awkward.
You realize I was just chirping ... resistance to change ... wondering why I can't see
the beauty ...
Of course, I think I know a better way (but, of course I don't) ... :-)
Haven't you ever thought that you could do it better?
The word "Browser" sends chills throughout my soul ...
Why am I trying to program a "Browser" ???
Actually, I am developing an eBook, and I wonder why would I want it to be hosted within
a Browser? hmmmmm
hmmmmmm ....
Dick
[4/4] from: gscottjones:mchsi at: 22-Oct-2002 20:37
From: Dick Ulrich
...
> I often wonder, what if some other language instead of HTML had
> gotten there first, what would it be like to code up a web page?
Uh, gopher++?
with lots of:
/-\-/...
:-)
--Scott Jones
(it is always scary to be agreed with ... BTW, I just read today that APL
now has a dot NET strategy ... so you *are* quite in the thick of it!!
Always nice to be in the thick of IT! I wish I were .. :-(
)