XML%20Standards%20and%20Tools

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XML Standards and Tools

• (Chapters 3 and 4 of XML Book)

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Standards to extend XML

• Namespaces
• Xlink
• XSL
• XSLT
• XML schema

• Prevent overlap of names
• Links XML documents
• Enables flexible output format
• Flexible transformation of XML content
• Extends DTD structure and uses XML notation

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Namespaces

• Attempt to solve the naming collision problem
  of XML elements and attributes
• status in two XML applications could have
  different meanings
• Provides the ability to prefix names with an
  owner
• ltacctstatusgtinvoicelt/acctstatusgt
• ltfulstatusgtshippedlt/fulstatusgt
• Use reserved XML attribute xmlns to associate a
  namespace prefix with a namespace name.

4
XML Linking Language (Xlink)

• Goal is to create a one-way link from an XML
  source document to a target document
• Beyond simple html links because it allows the
  exchange of structured information
• Ex. Linking an order document to a customer
  document
• Attach xlink namespace to attributes of an
  element
• Can link content from multiple xml docs into one
  new xml document
• Ex of lawyer compiling case info into one xml doc
• Ex of invoice and shipping data combined in a
  tracking doc

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eXtensible Stylesheet Language (XSL)

• Separates formatting of XML content
• Can specify font, spacing, etc for elements
• Can specify different page layout languages such
  as html, PDF, RTF, Postscript, etc.
• Can suppress or enhance different content for
  different users
• Instructions for particular elements use the
  xsl namespace
• Instructions for formatting output use the fo
  namespace

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XSL example

• ltxsltemplate matchaddressgt
• ltfoblock
• fofont-sizelarge
• fofont-weightbold
• fofont-familyAriel
• fofont-height2
• ltxslapply-templates/gt
• lt/foblockgt
• lt/xsltemplategt
• Note xsl is stated using XML syntax
• Note also apply-templates tells parser to
  apply same formatting to all children elements of
  Address element

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XSL Transformation (XSLT)

• A subset of XSL used to transform one XML
  document into another XML document with a
  different format
• Allows transformation of internal xml document
  into competing format of another companys xml
  document
• Ex of PO
• Uses xsl namespace
• Selects changed elements and order in new document

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XML Schema

• Current DTDs require separate parsing since they
  are not expressed with XML syntax
• DTDs also lack the ability to express the data
  type of elements and attributes
• Very early in development of XML schemas

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XML Schema example

• ltdataType nameUSAStategt
• ltbasetypestring/gt
• ltlexicalRepresentationgt
• ltlexicalgtAAlt/lexicalgt
• lt/lexicalRepresentationgt
• lt/dataTypegt
• ltelementType nameStategt
• ltdatatypeRef nameUSAStategt
• lt/elementTypegt

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Writing XML

• Manually (by hand)
• Text editor, such as Notepad
• MS freeware XML Notepad
• Guided by validating editor
• XML Authority
• XMetaL
• XML Spy
• Perhaps Office XP
• Automated
• Many ERP systems supporting XML
• Databases can generate XML output
• Custom applications can be coded

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Well-formedness vs. Validity

• Well-formedness relates to syntax
• Can it be parsed at all?
• Validity relates to vocabulary
• Does the well-formed XML document follow the DTD?
• XML documents do not have to follow a vocabulary

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Sample Vocabularies(Markup Languages)

• Mathematical Markup Language (MathML)
• Chemical Markup Language (CML)
• Wireless Markup Language (WML)
• Synchronized Multimedia Markup Language (SMIL)
• Scalable Vector Graphics Markup Language (SVG)
• VoiceXML

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Sample Vocabularies(Markup Languages) 2

• Bean Markup Language (BML)
• Extensible 3D (X3D)
• Bank Internet Payment System (BIPS)
• Electronic Business XML (ebXML)
• Visa XML Invoice Specification
• Commerce XML (cXML)
• LegalXML

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Sample Vocabularies(Markup Languages) 3

• Product Data Markup Language (PDML)
• Financial Products Markup Language (FpML)
• XML Metadata Interchange (XMI)
• Trading Partner Agreement Markup Language (tpaML)
• Small to Medium Business XML (SMBXML)
• Financial Information Exchange Markup Language
  (FixML)

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XBRL

• Extensible Business Reporting Language
• Custom markup language based upon XML
• XML for GAAP
• Being added to accounting and financial reporting
  software
• XBRL-compliant software automatically and
  transparently translates numbers and words for
  viewing of segments in Web browsers,
  spreadsheets, and in other application software

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XBRL 2

• Faster distribution of financial information
• Eliminate rewrites of financial reports
• Faster and better Internet searches
• Find desired XBRL-tagged data, not thousands of
  useless hits
• Drill down
• Minimize reentering data

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Extensible Electronic Data Interchange (XEDI)

• EDI has been around for more than 20 years
• Obstacles of EDI
• requires investment in proprietary software and
  hardware
• encodes documents that is only machine readable
• XEDI is to enable XML as an alternate syntax to
  bring e-commerce to small and mid-sized companies

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XML Repositories and Frameworks

• Commerce One XML Framework
• Microsofts Biz Talk Framework
• RosettaNet

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Simple Object Access Protocol(SOAP)

• XML (text) based RPC calls
• The solutions for sharing computer programs in
  the past - COM, DCOM and CORBA
• SOAP is designed to be less complex to learn and
  deploy on Internet infrastructures
• SOAP is independent of object model, operating
  systems or programming languages

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Religious Wars

• Need awareness that many camps have been staked
  out in XML turf
• Typically fall into two groups
• Microsoft
• XML dialed into operating system and most
  application products
• Windows is the XML application platform
• XML readily accessible through Visual Basic
• Not Microsoft
• Many platforms have XML parsing capabilities
• Various XML application frameworks can be
  procured
• Most support Java

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Enough Already!
lt/zorkgt!!!
ltzorkgt