Scripting News

Changes to the OPML 2.0 spec

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 17:26:57 GMT

Here's a list of the changes I made in the last couple of days to the draft OPML 2.0 spc. The changes were in response to comments here in July 2007. Included are notes on the specific suggestions, including ones I didn't understand or decided not to implement.

I provided in response to a request from Don Hopkins, a rigorous definition of flatdown. Actual C source code is provided. I also defined the other outline processing directions -- up, down, left, right, flatup and nodirection, even though Don didn't request those (and they're not mentioned in the spec).

I uploaded a copy of the C source code of the OPML Editor in a form that will be better indexed by search engines, so that future queries about the internal workings of outliners can be addressed by searching the source. It's licensed under the GPL, and build instructions using XCode are provided (as are build files for a variety of popular development environments).

I don't generally support this technology, I wrote much of the code but it was a very long time ago, and my memory isn't so good anymore. But surprisingly, a lot of it came back.

Don Park wants to extend OPML using a wiki. Not sure I understand how this works, but he says it doesn't involve changing the spec (thanks!) so it's no problem for me. I'll watch and see how it develops.

PS: Possibly the coolest thing made possible by today's changes is the ability to embed OPML 2.0 data in RSS 2.0 feeds.

OPML 2.0 spec, day 2

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 14:05:05 GMT

Another day with more work on the OPML 2.0 spec.

Yesterday I provided some examples of OPML files that use the category attribute.

A reminder to people working on OPML apps, I have a beta of a validator that tests against the 2.0 spec.

Here's an example call, the validator being used to check the current OPML file for Scripting News.

Also I've seen some comments recently that say that the spec isn't very good. If you have concerns about the spec, please let me know what they are, now, while errors and omissions can be fixed. Thanks.

RSS 2.0 with OPML 2.0

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 17:00:26 GMT

Here's an RSS 2.0 feed with an item that contains several outlines, basically the show notes for a podcast.

http://tinyurl.com/2jehce

You might have to View Source to see what's going on.

It's like chocolate and peanut butter. Both flavors are tasty, but when you put them together, it's even yummier!