[Pidgin] #6140: XML logger

[Pidgin]

#6140: XML logger
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  Reporter:  samuel     |       Owner:                    
      Type:  patch      |      Status:  new               
  Priority:  minor      |   Milestone:                    
 Component:  libpurple  |     Version:  2.4.2             
Resolution:             |    Keywords:  xml logger history
   Pending:  0          |  
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Comment (by samuel):

 Replying to [comment:5 deryni]:

 > Yes, the html logger has this defect as well but html doesn't have the
 same
 > well-formedness requirements that XML does. That is html processing
 entities
 > are allowed to be forgiving to well-formedness errors (or at least have
 a
 > history of doing so and are unlikely to change that). XML processing
 entities
 > are (more-or-less) explicitely not allowed to be similarly forgiving,
 thus
 > causing significantly greater annoyance if logs are malformed.

 I think this is just question of implementation, logger can be written it
 will ignore malformation of the xml file. But I agree that there exists
 more suitable file format. I just choosed XML because of easiest
 implementation.


 > That is a problem because it is an enormous amount of unnecessary
 churning of
 > the disk. At least as far as I'm concerned. This will definitely cause a
 > number of complaints from people (especially those who have home
 directories
 > mounted over things like NFS).

 Ok, I agree.

 > What information specifically are the current loggers not logging that
 you
 > want included? Can that information not be added to the logs as-is
 without
 > requiring a new logging type (or even with a new logging type) but
 without
 > invasive changes to the logging system itself? If not, why not?

 Current loggers just do somethink like a screenshot of conversation
 window. They log appearance, not content and that is what I think should
 be changed. It should be possible exactly determine what is message, who
 is its sender, when it was sent, what is the content.
 When I see somethink like "<3:34> Michael: I like chocolate cake" I will
 assume that this was message from Michael sent at 3:34, and probably I
 will be right. (Some problem occurs if the body  of the message was <3:34>
 Michael: etc...) But it is not unambiguous and it is not determinable by
 machine. And this turns off all possible improvements of current logging,
 like for example advance searching, or changing the color of sender in the
 log window and many other (just look to some other IM history if you want
 to know how this metainformation can be used).

 This is also answer why it is not possible to do this without invasive
 changes. It is impossible because the philosophy is completely different.
 I want to log content, but now it is only appearance what is logged.

 One more example to explain. Assume you are writing document in some sort
 of text procesor. Would  you save it as .png by making snapshot of the
 screen? No, because you would lost all metainformation. And this is the
 same with the logger.

-- 
Ticket URL: <http://developer.pidgin.im/ticket/6140#comment:6>
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