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by realkitkat 3519 days ago
If JSON is comparable to minefield, then I guess XML and ASN.1 are nothing short of nuclear Armageddon in complexity and ones ability to shoot themselves into the leg ;-)
2 comments

Have to take HN anti-parser comments with a grain of salt.

I wrote a parser for a format that everyone here would crucify me for. When I went on the job market, I removed it from my github, fearing employers would see it as a black mark. Soon after I got email from the creator of a YUUUGE project (as in, 5 digits of stars on github) asking why I had removed this parser that they were using ...

Also, as someone who has written an XML parser, according to some of the comments in this threads I'm way beyond medical help, and should give up on life :).
Depends on when you did this crazy thing. Was it in the dark days before they were "ubiquitous"? (for lack of a better word. also it's just a fun word)

Then you're a hero to those who made use of it.

If someone were to do that today, though, then yes, seek help.

;)

I got dinged in a thread the other day for writing my own JSON parser, so i'm not sure i should confess to also having written enough of an ASN.1 parser to deal with certain PEM key formats:

https://github.com/pivotal/cf-env/blob/master/src/main/java/...

Well, every person you spared from that experience owes you a beer...