Why is there a cabal file at all?

[Conal Elliott]

On 1/10/07, Isaac Jones <ijones at syntaxpolice.org> wrote:

> ...
> Remember: Cabal isn't only the build infrastructure, it's also the
> metadata format that tools like Hackage use. If you decide to combine data
> and code, you will no longer be able to manipulate the data with another
> tool.
>

I'm worried and confused about this conclusion. I want to address my
confusion first, and maybe the worry will be handled.

By "data" vs "code", I'm guessing you mean simple first-order values, and
mainly strings, vs everything else (especially functions). But I wonder if
instead you mean any Haskell value (including functions) vs the content of a
.hs file?

Maybe I'd have a firmer grasp of this issue if I could had in mind an
example of such a metadata-manipulating tool. Would someone please suggest
one?

   Regards, - Conal
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