Re: [Boost-users] XML library?

From: Brian Davis (bitminer_at_[hidden])
Date: 2008-07-27 15:16:10

Andy wrote:
> Not sure of any future boost plans for an XML library - seems a little
specific to me though.

An XML parsing library is needed in boost it's got my vote.

I have and currently using xerces and looked at extending
boost::serialization to provide xml with DTD validation.  Not something
serialization does.  I found boost::serialization to be somewhat difficult
to extend and asked that a clear path to extending serialization be
provided.

I think a front end / back end approach to these and other libraries
(xerces, libxml, rapidXML) should be supported in boost allowing the
developer to choose which implementation is used on the back end.  This will
mean that the front end interface will have to provide all features and
notifications of what features are and are not provided by the back end.

I used xerces and boost::function boost::bind to allow callbacks from Xerces
and tried to hide as much of the implementation of xerces from the
interface.  I was using SAX2 not DOM, but xerces supports both.  Light
weight and XML should not be used in the same sentence.  There is no light
weight XML implementation that is standards conforming.  If it is light
weight it lacks features, if it does not lack features it is heavy weight.
These two are inversely proportional when talking about XML.  And once we
get XML then we will want the holy grail of XML which is an XSLT
transformer.  Heck at least I want one.

Get ready to have boat loads of fun with wide char conversions and Unicode!

Brian