RE: [dita] Re: Discuss list processing expectations

["Grosso, Paul" <pgrosso@ptc.com>]

I agree with most of what Robert and Gershon said, though
I have a minor disagreement with one point below.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Gershon L Joseph [Yahoo] [mailto:gljoseph@yahoo.com] 
> Sent: Tuesday, 2008 April 08 3:55
> To: Robert D Anderson; DITA TC List
> Subject: [dita] Re: Discuss list processing expectations

> I think we 
> listed <ul> as a block element, so it should not be used as 
> an inline element.

I agree that <ul> is block but...

> I often find users marking up as follows:
> 
> <p>In order to install Acme Pro Plus Plus, your system must 
> meet the following requirements:
> <ul>
>   <li>Pentium 4 CPU or later</li>
>   <li>1 GB RAM or more</li>
>   <li>At least 350 MB free disk space</li>
> </ul>
> </p>
> 
> IMO, this should be marked up as follows, with the <ul> being 
> a following sibling of <p>, not a child of <p>:
> 
> <p>In order to install Acme Pro Plus Plus, your system must 
> meet the following requirements:</p>
> <ul>
>   <li>Pentium 4 CPU or later</li>
>   <li>1 GB RAM or more</li>
>   <li>At least 350 MB free disk space</li>
> </ul>

...I don't quite agree with Gershon here that lists shouldn't
be allowed within paragraphs.  I know that HTML requires lists 
(and pre) to be outside paragraphs, but requiring that is 
semantically wrong.  Given that a paragraph is supposed to 
contain one logical thought (as we all probably learned back
in elementary school), it doesn't make logical sense for a
paragraph to end with a colon!

Just like a display (block) equation can be in the middle of
a paragraph (read any math text book or technical manual), it
makes sense to allow a list or verbatim (aka "pre") block in
the middle of a paragraph.  Note that you can't markup something 
like:

<p>In order to install Acme Pro Plus Plus, your system must 
meet the following requirements:
<ul>
  <li>Pentium 4 CPU or later</li>
  <li>1 GB RAM or more</li>
  <li>At least 350 MB free disk space</li>
</ul>
unless you are running the Limited version of the product.
</p>

properly unless you allow lists within paragraphs since it
would make no sense to have the "unless..." part in a paragraph
by itself, and if you did, and you were indenting your paragraphs,
you'd get inappropriate indentation.  [Note that this very paragraph
in this email logically started with "Just like..." and ends after
this sentence and has a display code example within it; the part
starting with "properly" is not logically a paragraph.]

Given that HTML doesn't allow lists within paragraphs and we've
all been living with that, I could live with the restriction
Gershon suggests, but I don't see it as really being the right
thing to do.

paul