Essentially this is reintroducing eSpec into SRW?

I agree that *if* we were to introduce an eSpec equivalent xPath/XSLT
seems a good way to go. However, be aware that if we need eSpec, odds
are we also need qSpec, so we have to introduce the whole xPath/XSLT
syntax. There was some disscussion about this on the ZIG list a year or
to ago because xPath in its full glory is essentially a scripting
language and there was concern how this might be abused.

But will this actually solve the problem sited. If you are sending a DC
record with no title, odd's are you will still send no title if it was
eSpec for title (it would just be an evening emptier record).

Matthew

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Z39.50 Next-Generation Initiative [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
> On Behalf Of Robert Sanderson
> Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 4:05 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: xPath in searchRequest
> 
> Okay, this is maybe something for the version after 1.1, but 
> here goes:
> 
> We all want to be able to get some sort of brief record back 
> to display in
> a title list format or what have you.
> But this still doesn't guarantee that we'll get back what we 
> want ... I
> might send a DC record that doesn't have a title field when 
> Theo's app is
> set up to display title only, resulting in a null display.
> 
> As we're passing a schema for the records to be in, can we 
> add an xPath
> parameter as well which says which field(s) we want returned from that
> schema?
> 
> This would mean a lack of proliferation in little schemas 
> just to return
> the fields that we want for a particular application's 
> output, while still
> not having to transfer, parse and process the entire record 
> in the client.
> 
> Obviously recordXPath would be optional, and have the normal suite of
> diagnostics for when it can't be handled or the xpath is 
> invalid for the
> record.
> 
> 
> For example:
> 
> <searchRetrieveRequest>
>   <query>dc.creator="sanderson, r"</query>
>   <startRecord>1</startRecord>
>   <maximumRecords>10</maximumRecords>
>   <recordSchema>http://www.loc.gov/standards/ead/</recordSchema>
>   <recordXPath>/ead/eadheader/titlestmt/titleproper[1]</recordXPath>
> </searchRetrieveRequest>
> 
> <searchRetrieveResponse>
>   <numberOfRecords>1</numberOfRecords>
>   <records>
>      <record>
>        <recordSchema>http://www.loc.gov/standards/ead/</recordSchema>
>        
> <recordXPath>/ead/eadheader/titlestmt/titleproper[1]</recordXPath>
>        <recordXML>
>           <ead:titlestmt>This is Rob's ead record's 
> title<ead:titlestmt>
>        </recordXML>
>      </record>
>   </records>
> </searchRetrieveResponse>
> 
> 
> Thoughts?
> 
> Rob
> 
> 
> --
>       ,'/:.          Rob Sanderson ([log in to unmask])
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