Re: [office] "document template"

[Patrick Durusau <patrick@durusau.net>]

Dennis,

Agreed, but that still leaves the non-template ODF document in the air. 
And what happens if a template has content and is selected after content 
has been added to a non-template ODF document.

Hope you are having a great day!

Patrick

On 07/12/2011 01:07 PM, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> I think a document template is a kind of document, not something found in a document.
>
> Rationale:
>
> There are separate MIME types for template documents and the following are considered in the conformance clauses of Part 1,
>
> 2.2.1B allows for a document that has a styles.xml and no content.xml (and vice versa).
>
> 2.2.3 OpenDocument Text Document shall be a conforming OpenDocument Document that has, among other things, an associated mimetype that is one of "application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.text", "application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.text-template" or "application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.text-master".
>
> Note that none of these have very many words about them and the difference between a template and a non-template document is not explained at all other than the reference to a template in<office:document-meta>.  They all have an<office:text>  element in their<office:body>  element.
>
> It is not clear what happens when there is no<office:body>  element (i.e., there is no content.xml file).
>
> This lumping continues: there are template mimetypes for spreadsheet documents, drawing documents, presentation documents, chart documents, and image documents.
>
> In Appendix C (MIME Types and File Name Extensions) there is also formula document template and a text-web document serving as a template for HTML documents, but neither of these occur in the specification itself.
>
> We also need to deal with the fact that application/vnd.oasis.opendocument.database (not .base) has been registered for some time.  We should either fix the document or do another MIME type registration for .base.
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Patrick Durusau [mailto:patrick@durusau.net]
> Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2011 08:11
> To: ODF TC List
> Subject: [office] "document template"
>
> Greetings!
>
> Before I create an issue for this I wanted to get some feedback on the
> issue and its possible resolution.
>
> In 19.796.8<text:template-name>  we specify information to be displayed
> about a document template. But, we never define a document template.
>
> Contrast that with the definitions of index templates in Chapter 8 for
> example.
>
> Interoperability would be increased by defining what is meant by
> "document template," other than as something that can be pointed to and
> named. (xlink:href attribute on<meta:template>  and xlink:title on
> <meta:template>, respectively)
>
> At first I thought we could use template definitions like we do with
> index entries but those are relatively simple when compared to a
> document template (or what I imagine a document template to be).
>
> Then I thought we could simply say that<meta:template>  element
> attributes have to point at conformant ODF documents as templates.
>
> But if we do that, then what happens to the ODF document we are "in,"
> that is where the pointing happens? Do we insert the document template
> document at a point of insertion? Does it start at the top of the file?
> Is the result some merging of the styles, etc. of the first document and
> the document template? If so, by what rules?
>
> Part of the problem is that there isn't (to me anyway) a meaningful
> distinction between an ODF document and an ODF document being used as a
> document template. At one point in time templates were structurally
> different from documents but not any more.
>
> Which of course crosses all the master-styles stuff as well.
>
> Questions:
>
> 1) Should we simply lose all the document template language and
> pointers? Reasoning that you can simply start off with an ODF document
> that has pre-defined contents and styles, what some might have called a
> "template."
>
> Adv. Avoids the merging of styles/formatting issues, which might be
> difficult to define with any precision.
>
> DisAdv. Would eliminate some elements and attributes, possibly causing
> backwards compatibility issues.
>
> 2) If we keep it, how do we fashion rules for inter-mixing present
> document and "template" rules?
>
> Suggestions/comments?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Hope everyone is having a great day!
>
> Patrick
>


-- 
Patrick Durusau
patrick@durusau.net
Chair, V1 - US TAG to JTC 1/SC 34
Convener, JTC 1/SC 34/WG 3 (Topic Maps)
Editor, OpenDocument Format TC (OASIS), Project Editor ISO/IEC 26300
Co-Editor, ISO/IEC 13250-1, 13250-5 (Topic Maps)

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