[lextypes] DLL proof of concept

[Bob Foster]

> > > > - A language-independent API
>
> The datatypes.sf.net API is language-independent in effect, though it's
> specified in Java terms -- it doesn't depend on Java-specific features in
> any way.
>
> > > >specification and an implementation in one or
> > > > more existing programming languages that allows, at a minimum, an
> > > > application to ask, for any string value, whether it is a valid
instance
> > > > of a given datatype, and if so, to obtain the parse result.
>
> This is a subset of the RNG datatypes specification.

Um, no. The DTLL parse result is a (logical) XML fragment, the result of
parsing and/or normalization. That's what I meant, anyway.

> and IMHO too weak;
> you need value comparison as well.  I'd like to see the RNG version could
> be extended to allow datatypes to say they are magnitudes, and to permit
> comparison by magnitude.  That way we can ask if integer "5" < integer
> "10" and be told yes.

DTLL defines ordering, based on numeric and/or string comparison. A DTLL API
could provide this service.

Agree the API should be a superset of the RNG version. As a first cut, it
probably would make sense to extend it directly.

Bob Foster

> > > > The API should
>  > > > be able to operate independent of validation.
>
> No problem there.