[Zope-dev] Multi-Format Interface [was: Can't add "date" property to new ZClass]

[Loren Stafford]

I changed the title.

Sounds great. For PDF, I can't think of any reason to parse out the whole
file. All I want are the properties. So as long as the MFI didn't force me
into providing a plug-in that does more parsing than necessary, I'd be
happy. Then again, maybe someone else needs the whole document parsed.

-- Loren

> -----Original Message-----
> From: michel@digicool.com [mailto:michel@digicool.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 13, 1999 12:00
> To: Toby Dickenson
> Cc: Loren Stafford; zope-dev@zope.org
> Subject: [Zope-dev] Re: [Zope] Can't add "date" property to new ZClass
>
>
> (I moved this thread to zope-dev)
>
> Toby Dickenson wrote:
> >
> > On Mon, 11 Oct 1999 15:06:50 -0700, you wrote:
> >
> > >I'm creating a brand new ZClass (called "PDFClass"). It's my
> first ZClass.
> > >I've just added the Common Instance Property Sheet (called
> "PDFProperties").
> > >Now I'm trying to add properties to that property sheet. I added one
> > >"string" property OK, but now when I add the "date" property
> "pub_date", I
> > >get this error:
> > >
> > >          Invalid Date-Time String
> >
> > Are you planning to extract properties from PDF files? That's a task
> > on my to-do list too.
>
> Let's start a discussion on this before any code gets written, I've been
> thinking alot about document formats lately.
>
> I'm working on a model and elaboration of what I call MFI, Multi-Format
> Interface, which will be a component of the Portal Toolkit and possible
> a future core feature of Zope. Basicly, this consolidates all of the
> document types, DTML, XML, PDF, what-have you, into a subclassable
> interface that allows you to define pluggable format types.  This way,
> indestead of making a whole new type of object (PDFDocument, whatever)
> you make a new plug-in format for MFI that all Documents can then select
> as their format type.  This is much more flexible, extendable, and
> 'philosophically' correct than the current method.  As an example, an
> HTML formatter could be made (that extracts meta-information from a
> document and perhaps builds a DOM tree if it's parsable well enough), a
> PDF formatter (can DOM be put on PDF?)  a structured text (stx)
> formatter (we are elaborating a DOM interface for Stx).  The
> possiblities are endless, and it means that all of these document types
> in the add list can be reduced to one selection.
>
> This is a pretty light description, but there are many other benefits
> I'm formalizing into a document right now.  What are you thoughts?
>
> -Michel
>
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