[Zope-dev] Zope, 4Zope and XML???

[Jay, Dylan]

I've been considering using XML within Zope as a kind of XML repository with
versioning etc. I've been trying to follow what the developments with XML
with regard to Zope are and I'm becoming very confused. There seems to have
been some really good stuff coming up with regard to integration between
fourthought XML tools and Zope but that was 6 months back. What has
happened? From the looks of it fourthought have back out and are now
creating their own persistent XML storage and 4Suite application server. 

I've read all the xml-wiki stuff but there doesn't seem to have been any
actual code produced to improve support for XML in Zope for over 6 months.
What there is is pretty behind the times. I'd really like to see XPath, XQL,
XLink, XPointer all being well supported with some kind of heavy duty
XMLRepository storage in Zope. I see Zope as the perfect place to put this
sort of thing since it provides all the undo, versioning, transparent
persistence to make it easy to work with XML. What's needed is support for
more powerful query languages. I want to be able to use a Zope XML
repository as an alternative to an RDBMS i.e. to store data for use in
applications. I want to do this because RDBMS's are not so nice when it
comes to the kind of structured information that XML is good at. I don't
want to use straight Zope objects because I want a very loose coupling
between my data and my interface (something that I see as a deficit in the
default way Zope seems to promote development). I want to be able to examine
my data in an independent way and take it out and use something else as the
interface if necessary. XML lets me do that. RDBMS lets me do that.

Anyway, what's the story with Zope and XML?

----
Dylan Jay                           mailto:djay@avaya.com
Avaya Communication                 Tel:   +61 2 9886-8961
Level 5, 15 Talavera Road           FAX:   +61 2 9352 9224
Nth Ryde NSW 2113                   Mobile:0409 606 171
AUSTRALIA