Re: [syndication] RFC: myPublicFeeds.opml

["Bill Kearney" <ml_yahoo@ideaspace.net>]

> Agreed. I don't see anything wrong with using OPML, but a default document
> won't work in many cases.

OPML is entirely attribute based.  This is heinously bad if you want to do
anything more than just a crude one-line text entry for a feed.

What about ways to more effectively state a range of things about a feed?
Jamming it all into a single element with what could be and endless number of
attributes is just ugly.

As in:

<feed rdf:about="http://slashdot.org/index.rss";>
    <s8:status>Syndicated</s8:status>
    <tn:rank>1<tn:rank>
    <dp:citations>880</dp:citations>
    <fd:lastUpdated>20031014T12:30:00Z<fd:lastUpdated>
</feed>

As in s8 is syndic8's status, tn is for Technorati, dp being Daypop and fd being
FeedDemon.  Others could likewise do this.

This sort of layout is a helluva lot less heinous than trying to use an endless
series of attributes.  Not to mention the hassles of trying to apply useful
things like XSD and DTDs.

OPML works great for being text outlines with limited attributes on the outline
node.  Let's not harm effective growth of reader tools by saddling them with a
bad format from the outset.

> For example, my freebie users don't have access to the filesystem, and all
> files are generated dynamically. So they'll need to call up the list with
> something like mydomain.com/index.cfm/template/publicfeeds. IMO, the best
> way to convey that to an aggregator is via the <link> tag.

I also agree.  Forcing a fixed URL onto people introduces a number of needlessly
burdensome hassles.

-Bill Kearney