Bug #8309: Editorializing in rexml::ie_hack documentation

• Status: Closed
• Assignee: -
• Target version: -
• ruby -v: ruby 1.9.3p385 (2013-02-06 revision 39114) [x86_64-linux]
• Backport: 1.9.3: UNKNOWN, 2.0.0: UNKNOWN

[cbeckmann (Charles Beckmann)]

I noticed some rather shameful editorializing while perusing the official documentation for REXML::Document, specifically in the description of the ie_hack parameter. See here: http://ruby-doc.org/stdlib-1.9.3/libdoc/rexml/rdoc/REXML/Document.html

"Internet Explorer is the worst piece of crap to have ever been written, with the possible exception of 
 Windows itself. Since IE is unable to parse proper XML, we have to provide a hack to generate XML that IE’s 
 limited abilities can handle. This hack inserts a space before the /> on empty tags. Defaults to false"

This description is extremely unprofessional and has no place in Ruby's official documentation. I suggest that it be rewritten to contain only pertinent information.

This text is present in both trunk and 1.8.x.

Steps to reproduce: None, this is a documentation issue.

[henry.maddocks (Henry Maddocks)]

Don't hold back...
http://www.mikeperham.com/2010/12/08/contributing-to-ruby/

[duerst (Martin Dürst)]

• Status changed from Open to Closed
• % Done changed from 0 to 100

This issue was solved with changeset r40420.
Charles, thank you for reporting this issue.
Your contribution to Ruby is greatly appreciated.
May Ruby be with you.

---

lib/rexml/document.rb, lib/rexml/element.rb,
lib/rexml/formatters/pretty.rb: remove opinionated
language in documentation. [Bug #8309],
reported by Charles Beckmann

[duerst (Martin Dürst)]

The new text now reads:

# ie_hack::
#   This hack inserts a space before the /> on empty tags to address
#   a limitation of Internet Explorer.  Defaults to false

I suspect that this was an old version of Internet Explorer, and/or happened only in some configurations/APIs.
If somebody has more details on when this is a problem, I'd like to include it. Please open a new issue for that.