DOCBOOK: Re: Questions on <systemitem> and its class Attribute

[Norman Walsh <ndw at nwalsh dot com>]

/ Holger Rauch <Holger.Rauch@heitec.de> was heard to say:
| for all the values of the class attribute? <systemitem> as it's used now
| just seems like tag abuse.
| 
| Thanks for enlightening me on this issue.

The DocBook TC has moved back and forth on this issue. On the one
hand, there is a clear requirement to provide markup for semantic
items in computer software and hardware documentation. On the other,
adding elements that very few people use makes the DTD more confusing
to new users.

Generally, we tend to freely create new class values. If it develops
that new items are often used (as was the case with <systemitem
class='envar'>), we promote it to an element.

I hope that helps.

                                        Be seeing you,
                                          norm

-- 
Norman Walsh <ndw@nwalsh.com>      | There might very well be nothing;
http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/ | nor anyone. No one to notice that
Chair, DocBook Technical Committee | there is nothing, and to consider
                                   | that natural. But that there is
                                   | something, and, whatever it may
                                   | be, the strange thing! I shall
                                   | never cease being amazed at
                                   | this.--Andr\'e Gide