Subject: [apps-discuss] Webfinger / SWD Issue #1: JSON versus XML

From: Blaine Cook <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:15:10 +0100

Hi all,

The previous thread got a bit unwieldy, so I'm trying to break apart the
issues so that we can move forward.

First up, the XML versus JSON question. I'm not entirely sure how to get
consensus on the apps-discuss list, but my read has many people either
indifferent or pro-JSON-only. We have advice from two [of the most]
experienced practitioners (Tim Bray and Mark Nottingham) that we should
pick exactly one format. The number of formats shall be one, not two. Three
is right out. We're free to disagree, but I don't get the sense that we do
disagree on the whole. I agree with Tim and Mark on this one.

As for which of the two, despite the fact that they're basically the same,
and Webfinger has a number of *deployed* XRD endpoints for whom we'd be
breaking support, I'd argue for JSON because it's popular, but really
because it's easier to handle programmatically in most production languages
today. JSON is a special kind of hell for building large documents, but for
small packets of regular data, JSON is a great fit and XML is overkill.

Please reply to this message *only* if you're so opposed to SWD/Webfinger
being JSON-only that you're willing to put the whole project on hold to
have your way. If you feel that way, please do reply (no really, this
process only works if people reply with their strongly-held beliefs). :-)

b.