Robert Graham Merkel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
> However, from reading your sample language, I'm not clear whether my
> understanding of how such a language would work matches yours.
>
> My conception was that there would be NO output-format specific
> information in the reporting language. Therefore, we shouldn't be
> specifying font names, page length, and the like in the reporting
> language. The output filters would obtain this information from
> elsewhere (from the user or hardcoded into them). That way, report
> generators could be written to output to this reporting language
> without worrying about how the output filter would deal with them.
Right, that's what I was thinking. We'll need to make sure that
there's a form in the beginning of the report file that identifies
what type of report it is, *and* what version. Like you, I felt that
the reports would just contain the data relevant to the report,
leaning in the "LaTex/XML" direction of specifying the content
separate from the appearance...
However, after some reflection, there are certainly some unanswered
questions related to the items Christopher proposed. While my initial
reaction was to say that the stuff that Christopher is talking about
is better thought of as the infrastructure in the output layer,
i.e. the layer that takes the report files as input, that raises some
other questions.
While I really like the idea of the report files just containing the
report "information", we have to ask if we also need a way to
guarantee that once you've "rendered" a report you'll be able to
reproduce an *identical* copy later if you desire. If the answer to
that question is yes, then the formatting information has to be saved
somehow with the report. Off the top of my head, that means either
two files (say somereport.rpt and somereport.ps.fmt) or embedding the
formatting information in the report file directly. Both approaches
have their own substantial uglinesses, though of these two I prefer
the former; it keeps things I think should be separate, separate
(content and format), but it does increase the file "organization"
burden for the user.
Anyway I was thinking of something like this for the "data content",
wherever it goes.
;; Type and version
(report 'balance-sheet 4)
(title "Balance Sheet")
(description "This page shows your net worth.")
(date-generated "...")
;; psuedo data, going from memory about what's in there...
(account "Foo" 'expense 1002.1 1002.1 ())
(account "Bar" 'bank XXX YYY
((account "some sub account" 'bank AAA BBB)))
...
--
Rob Browning <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> PGP=E80E0D04F521A094 532B97F5D64E3930
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