Re: Requiring use of DocBook; LinuxDoc

[Gary Preckshot <garrell@inreach.com>]

Gregory Leblanc wrote:
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: David Lawyer [mailto:dave@lafn.org]
> > Sent: Friday, June 23, 2000 2:41 PM
> > To: Poet/Joshua Drake
> > Cc: David Lawyer; Mark Komarinski; Guylhem Aznar; Greg
> > Ferguson; Gregory
> > Leblanc; Taketoshi Sano; Stein Gjoen
> > Subject: Re: Requiring use of DocBook; LinuxDoc
> >
> > [ Regarding David Lawyer's proposal to continue to allow use
> > of LinuxDoc
> > for new authors]
> > On Fri, Jun 23, 2000 at 06:06:33AM -0700, Poet/Joshua Drake wrote:
> > >
> > > I disagree completely, we should not change the LinuxDoc rule.
> > > DocBook is not difficult in any way if you use it like LinuxDoc.
> > > What I mean is, yes DocBook can be a total bear if you try and do a
> > > much of nifty crap with it but if you keep it simple it is no more
> > > difficult than LinuxDoc.
> >
> > Not so.  See my examples at the end of this message.
> 
> I disagree.  There are more tags required, but that does not make it
> dificult.
> 
> > > In fact it is no harder than HTML.
> >
> > Possilbly true but HTML is significantly more difficult than LinuxDoc.
> 
> Hogwash.  I'd say that once you know what a markup language is, none of them
> are any more dificult than any other.

Actually, Greg, I think you're the one washing hogs here.
DocBook has 321 tags divided into 25 classes. Here's the
content model for just one of them, the <para> tag:

ELEMENT Para = (( #PCDATA | FootnoteRef | XRef | Abbrev |
Acronym | Citation | CiteRefEntry | CiteTitle | Emphasis |
FirstTerm | ForeignPhrase | GlossTerm | Footnote | Phrase |
Quote | Trademark | WordAsWord | Link | OLink | ULink |
Action | Application | ClassName | Command | ComputerOutput
| Database | Email | EnVar | ErrorCode | ErrorName |
ErrorType | Filename | Function | GUIButton | GUIIcon |
GUILabel | GUIMenu | GUIMenuItem | GUISubmenu | Hardware |
Interface | InterfaceDefinition | KeyCap | KeyCode |
KeyCombo | KeySym | Literal | Constant | Markup | MediaLabel
| MenuChoice | MouseButton | MsgText | Option | Optional |
Parameter | Prompt | Property | Replaceable | ReturnValue |
SGMLTag | StructField | StructName | Symbol | SystemItem |
Token | Type | UserInput | VarName | Anchor | Author |
AuthorInitials | CorpAuthor | ModeSpec | OtherCredit |
ProductName | ProductNumber | RevHistory | Comment |
Subscript | Superscript | InlineGraphic | InlineMediaObject
| InlineEquation | Synopsis | CmdSynopsis | FuncSynopsis |
IndexTerm | CalloutList | GlossList | ItemizedList |
OrderedList | SegmentedList | SimpleList | VariableList |
Caution | Important | Note | Tip | Warning | LiteralLayout |
ProgramListing | ProgramListingCO | Screen | ScreenCO |
ScreenShot | Address | BlockQuote | Graphic | GraphicCO |
MediaObject | MediaObjectCO | InformalEquation |
InformalExample | InformalFigure | InformalTable | Equation
| Example | Figure | Table)+)

This was mechanically parsed from the DocBook defining files
and describes the tags that are legal under <para> depending
on how many times it and they appear. Technically, it's
known as a "content model". Only a subset of the operators
legal in a content model are present. Do you know which they
are and what they mean? More particularly, can you edit a
<para> and get it right the first time? Can you use the
legal tags correctly? Do you know what they do? I don't
think anybody can use the full scope of DocBook even with
assistance.

Gary


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