Hello, oh keepers of the modules namespace,
Please give me your comments and suggestions on the following namespace
changes and additions.
After lengthy discussion in the DBI-users and DBI-dev lists, I propose
to change the name of the DBD::RAM module to DBD::AnyData and to expand
it in several ways. The name change is necessary because the module now
handles many types of file-based tables in addition to the in-memory
tables referred to in the old name.
The expansions will 1) open an API for other authors to create sub
modules to parse new data formats, automatically giving those formats a
DBI interface and 2) create a non-DBI interface to those sub modules
allowing tiedhash and other types of interfaces to the parsers.
Basically the AnyData.pm would be a "DBI for the rest of us" -- it would
offer a uniform way to access records in many formats and would handle
things like parsing, file locking, tieing hashes, etc. behind the scenes
but would not require either the DBI modules or use of SQL. AnyData.pm
is basically like Text::CSV_XS or XML::Simple, except that it works with
a single interface for many different data formats, it is extensible to
include user-defined data formats, it provides automatic DBI
accessibility, and it provides conversion between formats. I hope to
collaborate as fuly as possible with other authors so that, for example,
there will hopefully eventually be folks from the XML lists who will
help with or take over the XML portions to ensure that the AnyData
modules do not conflict with or compete with other XML initiatives.
The namespace would look like this:
DBD/AnyData.pm DBI access to in-memory & file-based
data
AnyData.pm access & convert many data formats
AnyData/Parser/CSV.pm parser for CSV (comma separated
values)
AnyData/Parser/XML.pm parser for XML data & files
AnyData/Parser/Ini.pm parser for Ini style config data &
files
AnyData/Parser/FixedWidth.pm parser for fixed-width records
AnyData/Parser/*.pm parsers for other data formats
AnyData/Storage/RAM.pm storage manager for in-memory tables
AnyData/Storage/File.pm storage manager for file-based
tables
AnyData/Storage/Tie.pm storage manager for tied structures
AnyData/Storage/*.pm other types of storage managers
For what it's worth, Tim Bunce and others on the DBI lists have said
they like these proposals and no one has raised any objections. I have
an alpha almost ready to go.
Shall I proceed with all this and upload an alpha to CPAN?
TIA,
--
Jeff
