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XSL as a style language

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I saw the discussion on this list a few weeks ago regarding XSL as a
transformation language vs. XSL as a style language.  Having been
involved in the effort to bring a high-level style language to the Web
for several years now, and having put a lot of work into getting that
style language into the original XML charter (dating back to the
summer of 1996) and forming the W3C group that is currently developing
it, I have some fairly strong opinions on the subject.

Unfortunately, I don't have time to engage in debate on this -- I read
xsl-l and several other lists in digest form and often am not able
even to skim all the messages, let alone join the discussion -- so I
held my tongue and will continue to do so.  (This is why I, and I
suspect many others, refrained from participating in the poll that was
taken at that time.)

If anyone is interested in knowing where I stand on XSL and related
issues, however, I would refer them to a presentation that I gave at
INRIA last month.  It's available in two parts linked from this page:

   http://www.inrialpes.fr/manifestations.html

Part 1 of the presentation includes a demo you can download that is
not based on XSL but does demonstrate the concept well enough to show
why XSL has always been conceived of primarily as a style language by
the people who agitated for the creation of the current W3C XSL
Working Group.

Again, I regret that I cannot engage in a discussion of these issues;
if I could, you would have heard from me earlier.

Jon

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 Jon Bosak, Online Information Technology Architect, Sun Microsystems
     901 San Antonio Road, MPK17-101, Palo Alto, California 94303
ISO/IEC JTC1/SC34::NCITS V1::OASIS:: Chair, W3C XML Coordination Group
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        You regard it much too much as a matter of course that
           one can tell anything to anyone. -- Wittgenstein
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