A side project of mine is to allow conversion to and from Zope databases (and export files) and XML. This will allow people to more easily access their data without Zope and correct problems, such as moved or renamed software modules, that prevent data from being unpicklable. I've completed a first cut at a tool for converting a Zope database to XML format. It is provided in the file 'bbb.py' in a 'utilities' directory that will be included in the distribution directory of the next Zope release. If you want to get this now, you can get it via Zope public CVS access. See http://www.zope.org/Community/Services/CVS_public_access for details. To run the tool, use: python utilities/bbb.py -rxml var/Data.bbb For now, the tool provides a way to "get at" your data without Zope and get a bit more of an idea of how Zope organizes data in the database. The file uses a module 'ppml.py' (Python pickle markup language :) that must by in the same directory as bbb.py or in the Python path. ppml.py provides for conversion from Python pickles to XML. It will eventually provide conversion from XML to Python pickles. Comments from members of the XML SIG (those who happen to spend time here too) would be welcome. I haven't written a formal DTD for this XML format. I would like to use a standard Python XML pickle format, but I'm not sure if such a thing exists yet. I took the approach of conversion to and from Python pickle format for two reasons: - It allows me to do conversion to and from database format without actually creating any (application objects). This is much faster than creating actual objects and does not require that any application Python modules needed to unpickle objects be around or working. For example, this allows conversion of objects that are not unpicklable. - It means that many of the implementation details of pickling can be avoided. Of course, in combination with the Python pickle modules, pickling objects to XML is straightforward: import pickle, ppml print ppml.ToXMLloads(pickle.dumps(myobject)) Enjoy. Jim -- Jim Fulton mailto:jim@digicool.com Python Powered! Technical Director (888) 344-4332 http://www.python.org Digital Creations http://www.digicool.com http://www.zope.org Under US Code Title 47, Sec.227(b)(1)(C), Sec.227(a)(2)(B) This email address may not be added to any commercial mail list with out my permission. Violation of my privacy with advertising or SPAM will result in a suit for a MINIMUM of $500 damages/incident, $1500 for repeats.