XML 101: Week 1 - What is XML

XML 101 Week 1 - What is XML From Jennifer Kyrnin, your Guide to Web Design / HTML After completing this course, you will understand the basics of XML, how to create a valid and well-formed document and create DTDs, Schemas and XSLT documents. XML is a complex tool, but with this class you'll be well on your way to understanding it. To get the most out of this class you should do the following: Save all the emails. They include links to the lessons, and additional information that you may need in the future. Read every lesson Most of the questions I get about the classes are answered in either the email text or the links in the email. In this lesson, you'll get an introduction to XML. You'll learn the basic parts of an XML document, and why you might want to learn XML. Remember, if you miss a lesson, or want to get ahead, you can get the classes resent or get missing lessons. This course will cover many aspects of XML, including: Basic XML XML rules and syntax XML parsers and how they work Elements and attributes DTDs and Schemas Namespaces XSL and XSLT As well as advanced XML technologies Syllabus Week 1 What is XML? Defining Content Examining XML XML Terms Why Learn XML? Class Notes What is XML? What is XML? A technical definition of XML or Extensible Markup Language is "a document markup language for defining structured information". Before we go on, you should be aware of what XML is NOT: XML is not a programming language XML is not a database XML is not for Web design Defining Content What is Content As computers (and developers) became more sophisticated, it became apparent that we could define more than just the look of the text on the screen. It is often useful to define the actual content type of information. For example, take my name: Jennifer Kyrnin. The computer sees this as just a random collection of letters. You, as the reader, have to assign meaning to it. In this case, it is the name of the author of this article, but in other situations my name could mean different things. Examining XML Look More Closely XML is a documented language, and the specification is maintained by the W3C. Once you understand the specification, you'll be better able to work with XML. XML Terms Jargon You Should Know XML often sounds more confusing than it really is because there are a lot of jargon terms. Once you understand the following terms, you'll be able to read most basic XML tutorials and have a much better chance of understanding what they mean. Why Learn XML? Next Steps What's the point of learning XML when you already know HTML? Well, the reality is that there are many applications that, while they can be done with HTML, DHTML, Java, ASP, or CGI, work much more easily as an XML application. Class Notes Get Lost Lessons This is a self-paced class. This means that if you need more time than a week to review the lessons, that is fine. And if you finish the lessons before the next week, you can request the next lesson. This email is written by: Jennifer Kyrnin Web Design / HTML Guide Email Me | My Blog | My Forum   Missing a lesson? Click here. About U. is our collection of free online courses designed to help you learn a new skill, solve a problem, get something done, or just learn more about your world. Sign up now, and we will email you lessons on a daily or weekly basis. About respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 249 West 17th Street New York, NY, 10011 © 2010 About.com   Advertisement