Cezar Totth wrote:
>
> I haven't seen two different (not speaking about the same)
> hardcoded API libraries capable at the same time to:
> - generate one HTML content and one for other type (let
> say .PDF)
> - use the same interface.
I have one interface that is implemented by classes providing PDF and
HTML. Of course the functionality is minimal. Four years ago I wrote a
medium-sized system that used ole to manipulate content of Word
documents (this wasn't Java). Often, documents live longer than small
non-standard template scripts, and that's another reason against
templates.
I take this code-lifetime problem so seriously that I'm putting some
time in making sure that I do not depend on my own code :) and I'm
trying to use several XML/HTML parsers keeping the essential interfaces,
and using wrapper classes as needed.
> Despite their drawbacks, templates have two big
> advantages:
>
> - maximum flexibility - one can not only change look&feel but also insert
> new information(s) from different "objects" (other apps)
> than ones already printed, in the same document.
You can programmatically manipulate a document from more than one
application.
> Yes, proprietary, closed loop-tags
> or simple $foreach and conditional constructs are required,
> but that's all -
> don't forget that now most web designers handle well
> at least one of interpreted languages like
> javascript, perl, php or other - tag-oriented style.
You may want to share these designers with me ;)
> I would use programmed (let say Word) generator only
> if my users cant use a similar-feature text based format,
> like .rtf
Users typically has their own oddities, and if you have to design an
extranet for a project that already has 99% of its documentation as Word
documents, chances are that you'll end dealing with _some_ word
documents. Really.
Again we are talking about different needs, and you accept there are,
but you keep discussing. This thread is now 99% religion and 1%
technology.
> XML debate - I see XML more as a portable way to represent and change
> structured data and documents than a replacement for template engines,
> with or without XSL.
I don't think that XML is a replacement for template engines.
> - an e-mail icon in bottom-left corner, wich animates when new mail
> arrives...
Hi, Cezar, I think you're confused with your Outlook taskbar ;-)
Carlos
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