Marsha Maguire wrote:
 
> Can I make multiple declarations of DTD's in one document?  I imagine
> I'll need at least to declare TEI (do I need to declare the full TEI DTD
> in order to use the spoken word tags and indexing tags -- so I can add
> subject terms throughout the transcripts --  or can I use TEI_Lite?),
> and the new XML-based SMIL DTD so we can link into the oral history
> video files from which the transcripts were made, synchronizing and
> timing them as appropriate.
 
If you want valid XML documents you need a DTD. As for SGML, XML
requires a single document type dclaration. No more, no less. You cannot
'combine' two DTD's by declaring both. You'll have to insert the logics
of one into the other, adapting one of the two for your purposes. I
would not advise this.
 
> Is it possible t use TEI tags in an XML-tagged document at this point?
 
Yes, such that you can create a well-formed XML document (and process it
as required) assuming you use an SGML DTD (TEI is still SGML, not XML).
The result of standard SGML software would be an SGML instance, but such
an instance can be transformed to an XML instance automatically --
assuming you are talking XML, not namespaces or Xlink/Xpointer. And even
then scripts can be created to transform TEI conventions into the
appropriate XML
conventions.
 
On TEI DTD for XML: that's another matter. There is as yet --as far as I
know-- no XML version of the TEI, and I think there is only one way to
do it correctly, and that's through schemas. W3C now receives proposals
for schema definition languages in XML, and we'll have to wait or
participate in order to make the transformation to XML. I wanted to be
in Hungary to talk this over with some people, but alas, I have to give
class this week. But I will sure post a proposal this summer.
 
> DO I need to create a local DTD, defining tags and attributes we need
> from the TEI?  That's a scary thought, but I guess I have enough
> documentation on XML and the TEI to give it a try.  Still, it would be a
> lot easier to simply declare the pertinent DTDs at the beginning of the
> tagged transcript!
 
You may want to use the extension mechanism of TEI to insert new tags --
but when you want to 'combine' two DTD's you'll find it almost
impossible. I do not know SMIL that well, but at least I can imagine a
SMIL processor to search for elements that ae part of eg. %body-content;
and process these in line with the specs or application. More realistic
seems a two-document approach in which the SMIL instance 'links in' (as
through 'independent links') to the TEI instance, or the TEI document
links to such a SMIL instance for presentation purposes. This can be
done withou much design effort, but you will (as always) need a SMIL
aware processor.
 
Arjan
 
--
Arjan Loeffen
SGML/XML
Researcher Utrecht University: [log in to unmask]
http://CandL.let.uu.nl/
Consultant Salience B.V.: ++31+306056675