[tdwg-content] Delimiters for Darwin Core list-type terms

[Richard Pyle]

> Rich,
> is there any other term apart from dynamicProperties that would use the
> KVP delimiter?

Not that I am aware of. Although, as Tim pointed out, typeStatus might be an
example of a nested array (though not shown in the example).

And I agree with your description of where we *ought* to be headed on this.

But the current reality is that there are terms in dwc that call for an
array of values, and people will likely continue to have a need for such
going forward.  I personally would like to see some statement about "best
practice" for delimiters (when needed) in the context of dwc, but I'm mostly
indifferent as to whether this should be part of the standard, or simply an
external recommended "best practice".  Maybe not associated with individual
terms, but as a general practice.

If not a statement about best practice, at the very least I think there
should be consistency in the documentation, and let people glean what they
will from that.  I don't see any value in maintaining deliberate
inconsistency in the documentation as an overt statement that "do whatever
is best for your implementation".

In keeping with the original issue as John posted it (i.e., explicitly
separating the question of whether multiple delimited values are a good or
bad thing), I will maintain that I support consistency in documentation for
the terms that already exist, and that I support the pipe (|) -- without
spaces -- as the primary delimiter used in the documentation & examples.
Moreover, in cases where a secondary delimiter is useful (even if only for
dynamicProperties), my vote for the secondary delimiter is the tilde.

Aloha,
Rich