Mike Sax: In order for XHTML in RSS to reach critical mass (and thus become a standard), we need to do the following...
I use HTML Tidy. It runs on all the major operating systems. It has a Java port and a Perl interface. Jon Udell has even documented how to use it with Radio and why.
Once usage of XHTML in RSS feeds is documented, I'll add explicit support to the RSS validator.
I have outlined, in a rather long-winded way, why I prefer content:encoded over xhtml:body.
Joe,
First, Abstractions Leak.
Second, to some, it actually is easier to return the body as is than to run it through an extra level of XML encoding.
Finally, given a choice between data that I can do with as I please or for somebody to impose what they think are the appropriate abstractions, I prefer all my data accessible via a common mechanism, thank you very much.
IMHO, that's the key value statement of both REST and the well formed web.