Thursday, February 10, 2005
By now, you've no doubt heard some Web guru singing the praises of XML. But what, you wonder, is so special about it? Here are a few key elements:
XML allows you to create your own markup language. Unlike HTML, XML has no predefined set of elements. You can create your own elements based on the specific needs of your Web site, company, or industry.
XML data can be presented in a variety of ways. XML concentrates on describing data, not on the appearance of the data. However, you can display XML documents in a variety of ways. XML's ability to separate data from the presentation instructions allows you to change the way an XML document looks without changing the actual data.
XML enables more efficient information exchange over the Web. XHTML is considered the "next generation" version of HTML and adds many of the advantages of XML to the older HTML language. When browsers eventually support it, the data exchange between a browser and a Web server will be greatly optimized. For example, rather than reloading an entire HTML page, XHTML will enable you to download only the portion of the page that has changed since the last reload.
XML is good for transferring data across platforms. Businesses depend on reliable data interchange within and across companies. However, the age-old challenge in transferring data has been that everyone stores data in a different structure using different software tools. XML provides a reliable, low-cost alternative to expensive data-sharing technologies.
XML allows you to create your own markup language. Unlike HTML, XML has no predefined set of elements. You can create your own elements based on the specific needs of your Web site, company, or industry.
XML data can be presented in a variety of ways. XML concentrates on describing data, not on the appearance of the data. However, you can display XML documents in a variety of ways. XML's ability to separate data from the presentation instructions allows you to change the way an XML document looks without changing the actual data.
XML enables more efficient information exchange over the Web. XHTML is considered the "next generation" version of HTML and adds many of the advantages of XML to the older HTML language. When browsers eventually support it, the data exchange between a browser and a Web server will be greatly optimized. For example, rather than reloading an entire HTML page, XHTML will enable you to download only the portion of the page that has changed since the last reload.
XML is good for transferring data across platforms. Businesses depend on reliable data interchange within and across companies. However, the age-old challenge in transferring data has been that everyone stores data in a different structure using different software tools. XML provides a reliable, low-cost alternative to expensive data-sharing technologies.
