On 1/14/07, David Powell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:>Atom doesn't describe the processing model of Atom
documents explicitly enough for me to infer much about the semantics of atom:source. ... Needing to [use atom:source] is a good sign that you are abusing feed elements to carry entry metadata though.
There are quite a few very common, non-abusive reasons for using atom:source. For instance, the RFC clearly discusses the case where an entry is copied from one feed document into another and needs to maintain its association with the feed metadata of the source feed. There is also the question of signatures.... In any case, I read the Atom spec as clearly intending that an entry with an atom:source element can be semantically equivalent to a single entry feed document whose feed meta-data is equivelant to that contained in the entry's atom:source. If this isn't what appears to be written, then I suggest that it is a case of non-optimal drafting and the history of this group should be consulted to clarify the intent. I explained why entries with source needed to be equivelant to single entry feeds when I made the original proposal for atom:source at the first Atom community meeting at Sun in June of 2004 and I made it continuously throughout the process of drafting the RFC. This is also one of the many reasons why Atom "assigns no significance to the order of atom:entry elements within the feed." The meaning of an entry derives only from data which is either encoded within it or which is recorded as part of the feed metadata associated with the entry. That association is either by containment within a feed document or, more strongly, by encapsulating the feed metadata within the entry. This equivelance property is essential in order to make aggregated/synthetic feeds work and it is necessary to make licensing work properly. (Yes, there were some of us thinking about licensing long before James made his proposal...) Thus, the "processing model" for an entry with an atom:source is just as precisely described as the processing model for a single entry feed document... bob wyman
