XOM API for Processing XML with Java

["Michael Kay" <mike AT saxonica.com>]

> It doesn't 
> seem that it would be harmful to allow the method to be overriden. 

It wouldn't be harmful to allow it to be overridden by an implementation
that fulfils the contract - that is, one which conforms to the XQuery/XPath
specifications. But I suspect Elliotte is making it final because he knows
there are people like you who would like to replace it with a non-conformant
implementation. He tends to be fussy about this kind of thing, and I
sympathise. In the long run, you get more reliable systems if people don't
break interface contracts.

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/