Appendix: Useful Online Resources
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XML is one recommendation in a family of related recommendations. Together, the recommendations create a framework for designing markup languages. They specify everything from the rules for constructing the language to the styling and querying of XML documents. Many recommendations rely on features from other recommendations for their operations.
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) oversees XML and the related recommendations. Each recommendation that W3C releases contains a set of specifications and guidelines, which you can view at the W3C website. Recommendations from the W3C are similar to standards issued by other organizations.
The W3C is an international member organization made up of companies, academics , and other consultants . It also has full-time staff members . The mission of the W3C is
To lead the World Wide Web to its full potential by developing protocols and guidelines that ensure long- term growth for the Web.
Recommendations start as proposals from members or as notes from nonmembers. At this point, the proposal or note has no backing from the W3Cit is only an idea. If the W3C adopts the idea, it forms a Working Group to create a Working Draft document and oversee the development of technical content.
Working Drafts are released for comment. This may result in the creation of further drafts. Once the draft has been sufficiently refined, the Working Group releases a Proposed Recommendation. This provides the final chance for review of the specification. At this point, the proposal could be returned to Working Draft status or dropped from the W3C activities. If the members agree to accept the proposal, it becomes a recommendation.
Table A-1 shows the main XML-related recommendations and activities at the W3C, their purpose, and the responsible Working Group(s).
| Recommendation | Purpose | Main Responsibility |
|---|---|---|
| Extensible Markup Language (XML) | XML provides a framework for creating markup languages. | XML Core Working Group |
| XML Schema Definition (XSD) | Schemas describe the structure and syntax of valid XML documents. | XML Schema Working Group |
| Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) | XSL determines the presentation of XML documents. It uses XSL Transformations (XSLT), the XML Path Language, and XSL Formatting Objects (XSL-FO). | XSL Working Group |
| XSL Transformations (XSLT) | XSLT transforms one XML document into another XML document. | XSL Working Group |
| XSL Formatting Objects (XSL-FO) | XSL-FO specifies output formatting for an XML document. | XSL Working Group |
| XML Path Language (XPath) | XPath navigates or locates specific parts of XML documents. | XSL Working Group, XML Linking Working Group |
| XML Linking Language (XLink) | XLink describes the links between XML documents. | XML Linking Working Group |
| XML Pointer Language (XPointer) | XPointer describes references between XML documents so you can use them in links. | XML Linking Working Group |
| XML Query (XQuery) | XQuery queries XML documents to extract information. At the time of this writing, it was a Working Draft rather than a recommendation of the W3C. | XML Query (XQuery) Working Group |
| XForms | XForms are an XML-based replacement for XHTML forms. | XForms Working Group |
| XML Information Set | XML Information Set provides a consistent set of definitions for the other specifications to use when they want to refer to information. | XML Core Working Group |
| Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) | SOAP is a standard format for requesting information from a web service | XML Protocol Working Group |
| Web Services Description Language (WSDL) | WSDL describes web services using an XML structure. | Web Services Description Working Group, Web Services Addressing Working Group |
You can find a summary of the latest recommendations and publications at www.w3.org/TR/.
Table A-2 provides a summary of the W3C URLs for the XML and related recommendations. All URLs were correct at the time of writing.
| Recommendation | URL |
|---|---|
| Document Type Definitions | Existed prior to XML specification; covered in www.w3.org/TR/REC-xml/ |
| Extensible Markup Language (XML) | www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xml-20040204/ (XML 1.0 third edition), www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xml11-20040204/ (XML 1.1) |
| XML Schema | www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xmlschema-0-20041028/ (XML Schema Primer), www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xmlschema-1-20041028/ (XML Schema Structures), www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xmlschema-2-20041028/ (XML Schema Datatypes) |
| XSL Transformations | www.w3.org/TR/1999/REC-xslt-19991116/ |
| XSL Formatting Objects | www.w3.org/TR/2001/REC-xsl-20011015/ |
| XPath | www.w3.org/TR/1999/REC-xpath-19991116/ |
| XPath 2.0 (Working Draft) | www.w3.org/TR/2005/WD-xpath20-20050404/ |
| XLink | www.w3.org/TR/2001/REC-xlink-20010627/ |
| XPointer | www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-xptr-element-20030325/ (XPointer element() Scheme), www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-xptr-framework-20030325/ (XPointer Framework), www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-xptr-xmlns-20030325/ (XPointer xmlns() Scheme) |
| XQuery | www.w3.org/TR/2005/WD-xquery-20050404/ (Working Draft) |
| XForms | www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-xforms-20031014/ (XForms 1.0 recommendation), www.w3.org/TR/xforms11/ (XForms 1.1 Working Draft) |
| XML Information Set | www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xml-infoset-20040204/ (second edition) |
| SOAP | www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-soap12-part0-20030624/ (SOAP 1.2 Primer), www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-soap12-part1-20030624/ (SOAP 1.2 Messaging Framework), www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-soap12-part2-20030624/ (SOAP 1.2 Adjuncts), www.w3.org/TR/2003/REC-soap12-testcollection- 20030624/ (SOAP 1.2 Specification Assertions and Test Collection) |
| WDSL | www.w3.org/TR/wsdl (WSDL 1.1 note from Microsoft, Ariba, and IBM), www.w3.org/TR/2004/WD-wsdl20-20040803/ (WSDL 2.0 Core Language Working Draft), www.w3.org/TR/2004/WD-wsdl20-extensions- 20040803/ (WSDL 2.0 Predefined Extensions ˆ Working Draft), www.w3.org/TR/2004/WD-wsdl20-bindings-20040803/ (WSDL 2.0 Bindings ˆ Working Draft) |
Table A-3 provides a summary of other XML-related online resources that you might find useful. Again, all URLs were correct at the time of writing.
| Recommendation | URL |
|---|---|
| XML | www.w3.org/XML/1999/XML-in-10-points.html.en www.w3schools.com/xml/default.asp http://xml.silmaril.ie/ www.xml.com/pub/a/98/10/guide0.html |
| DTD | www.w3schools.com/dtd/default.asp |
| XML schema | www.w3schools.com/schema/default.asp lucas .ucs.ed.ac.uk/xml-schema/ www.xml.com/pub/a/2001/06/06/schemasimple.html www.xml.com/pub/a/2000/11/29/schemas/part1.html |
| XPath | www.w3schools.com/xpath/default.asp www.topxml.com/xsl/xpathref.asp www.oreilly.com/catalog/xmlnut/chapter/ch09.html XSL www.wdvl.com/Authoring/Languages/XSL/ |
| XSLT | www.topxml.com/xsl/XSLTRef.asp www.w3schools.com/xsl/default.asp www.xml.com/pub/a/2000/08/holman/index.html |
| XSL-FO | www.w3schools.com/xslfo/default.asp www. renderx .com/tutorial.html www.xml.com/pub/a/2002/03/20/xsl-fo.html |
| XLink and XPointer | www.w3schools.com/xlink/default.asp www.cafeconleche.org/books/bible2/chapters/ch20.html www.xml.com/pub/a/2000/09/xlink/index.html |
| XQuery | www.w3schools.com/xquery/default.asp www.xml.com/pub/a/2002/10/16/xquery.html |
| XForms | www.w3schools.com/xforms/default.asp www.xml.com/pub/a/2001/09/05/xforms.html |
| Namespaces | www.w3schools.com/xml/xml_namespaces.asp www.rpbourret.com/xml/NamespacesFAQ.htm |
| Web services | http://webservices.xml.com/pub/a/ws/2001/04/04/ webservices /index.html |
| WSDL | www.w3schools.com/soap/default.asp www.oreilly.com/catalog/webservess/chapter/ch06.html |
| SOAP | www.w3schools.com/soap/default.asp |
| REST | www.xfront.com/REST-Web-Services.html |
Some of the examples in the book used ASP.NET. I also provided PHP versions of the code with your resources. Table A-4 lists links that might be helpful if you want to learn more about working with ASP.NET and PHP.
| Server-side language | Website |
|---|---|
| ASP.NET | www.w3schools.com/aspnet/ www.asp.net/tutorials/quickstart.aspx www.learnvisualstudio.net www.asp-visual-basic-csharp-training.net |
| PHP | www.php.net www.php.net/tut.php www.w3schools.com/php/default.asp www.phpbuilder.com www. devshed .com/c/b/php www.zend.com/zend/tut/index.php |
