Re: DOCBOOK: Re: Concrete proposal for #480954: Extendtextobjecttoinsert external files

[Jirka Kosek <jirka@kosek.cz>]

Karl Eichwalder wrote:

> > Because they need fresh and actual copy of some external file (eg.
> > program source) in a document.
> 
> Define your files as entities and use entity references.  Write a
> Makefile to preprocess the files if it's necessary to escape special
> SGML/XML characters.
>
> The hacks you're offering to users makes their life difficult (but the
> hacks save IT jobs, though).

IMHO using entities is much more difficult than other ways of doing
things. Entity mechanism in XML/SGML is quite inflexible. That's why
many DTDs use direct filereferences for inserting images over indirect
entity mechanism.  Inserting external file as file (not as markup) is
almost same as inserting image. Most people seems using some element
with attribute pointing to file easier to use and manage than entities.
For the same reason there is XInclude -- it is much more easier to use
than entities and allows you to have DOCTYPE in each "entity". 

IMHO textobject hack will make life of users less difficult.

				Jirka
 
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  Jirka Kosek  	                     
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