Re: The impact of data format selection on application development

A specific CSV file, perhaps not.  But If you want to handle all the cases
in that RFC, you either need to use a CSV library or suffer the possible
consequences, just as in XML or HTML.

Note that the \ escape is not part of CSV: that belongs to a related format
I'll call "DSV" (delimiter separated value) which is parameterized by the
delimiter.  CSV uses double quotes to surround a field containing comma or
newline, and so cannot be processed line by line.


On Sun, Jul 10, 2022 at 11:17 AM Ihe Onwuka <[email protected]> wrote:

>
> On Sun, Jul 10, 2022 at 10:54 AM Roger L Costello <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>> Michael Kay quite correctly noted that the specification of my
>> hypothetical data format is incomplete. Please, allow me to add a sentence
>> or two to address its inadequacies:
>>
>> The data format consists of lines (lines are strings that are typically
>> separated by newlines, although the user may use a symbol other than
>> newline, if desired). Each line contains fields. Fields are ASCII strings.
>> Fields are separated by a delimiter (common delimiters include the tab,
>> space, or comma symbol, although the user is free to use another symbol if
>> desired). Fields may contain the field delimiter symbol provided the symbol
>> is preceded by a backslash symbol (this is called "escaping the symbol").
>> Fields may be empty. Each line has the same number of fields.
>>
>> Admittedly, those additions do result in using more ink to specify the
>> data format. Nonetheless, it is a far cry from the dense 36 pages of the
>> XML specification plus the 16 pages of the namespace specification. I think
>> the data format can be fully understood in less than 30 seconds. Contrast
>> with gaining a full understanding of the XML data format, which may take
>> months or even years.
>>
>> Thanks for the comments Michael!
>>
>> /Roger
>>
>>
> So do you think reading and comprehending the  CSV technical standard RFC
> is a prerequisite for using a CSV representation for a simple piece of
> data?
>