Requests for comment/Ditch crappy API formats

Tracked in Phabricator
Task T95715

The initial goal of this RFC was the deprecation of several silly API output formats. However, this was generally achieved as part of the larger Requests for comment/API roadmap RFC, so I would like to concentrate on a clearer timeline for their complete removal.

Request for comment (RFC)

Ditch crappy API formats
Component	General
Creation date	24 June 2014
Author(s)	MaxSem
Document status	implemented Approved -- Tim Starling (talk) 22:58, 12 November 2014 (UTC) See Phabricator.

Current state

Here's the breakdown of API formats requested by users from Wikimedia sites during June 19, 2014:

375079448	json
34750831	xml
13068687	php
243625	xmlfm
71337	txt
62549	jsonfm
41158	text/x-wiki
34458	dbg
24460	yaml
7532	txtfm
34	yamlfm
31	dbgfm
28	none
25	rawfm
23	dump
22	phpfm
22	wddxfm
22	dumpfm
18	wddx
4	html
4	jsonf
3	jsonp
3	j
2	atom
2	raw
2	text
2	csv
2	PHP%20print_r()
1	wdxfm
1	default
1	pjson
1	xhtml
1	XML
1	plain
1	htmlfm
1	yamfm
1	xml%27
1	xm%20l
1	js
1	jsonaction%3Dquery
1	json%0D%0A
1	xml%27,%200,%20true
1	xml%27,0,true
1	jaon
1	xmuslfm

Proposal

Set a clear date when a format should die. Contact major users of a format in advance to ensure they move off it, e.g. [1].

Proposed timeline:

• 6 months for WDDX and dump.
• 12 months for YAML, dbg and txt.