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By Eric van der Vlist
First Edition
June 2002
Pages: 396
ISBN 10: 0-596-00252-1 |
ISBN 13: 9780596002527
(Average of 5 Customer Reviews)
The W3C's XML Schema offers a powerful set of tools for defining acceptable XML document structures and content. While schemas are powerful, that power comes with substantial complexity. This book explains XML Schema foundations, a variety of different styles for writing schemas, simple and complex types, datatypes and facets, keys, extensibility, documentation, design choices, best practices, and limitations. Complete with references, a glossary, and examples throughout.
Full Description
- Foundations of XML Schema syntax
- Flat, "russian-doll", and other schema approaches
- Working with simple and complex types in a variety of contexts
- The built-in datatypes provided by XML Schema
- Using facets to extend datatypes, including regular expression-based patterns
- Using keys and uniqueness rules to limit how and where information may appear
- Creating extensible schemas and managing extensibility
- Documenting schemas and extending XML Schema capabilities through annotations
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Cover | Table of Contents | Index | Sample Chapter | Colophon
Book details
First Edition: June 2002
ISBN: 0-596-00252-1
Pages: 396
Average Customer Reviews: (Based on 5 Reviews)
Featured customer reviews
Best learning book I've used., July 24 2004
As an experienced developer, I had a need to get into schemas deep and fast. I bought a series of books on schemas, and never managed to get more than simple schemas working.
With this book, it all changed. This book teaches you the complicated subject of schemas. It covers regular expressions with examples. It describes pitfalls you *will* run into, and your options how to deal with them. You'll find out why schemas can be so cranky and frustrating sometimes.
It's not a tutorial. There are some simple tutorial books you might try before this one, if you want to get used to writing the syntax and such. But those books won't stand up, when you really start controlling XML with schemas.
The book is complicated to read. The sentences are long and sometimes twisted. I've found they're often necessarily so. The author is careful with his words, and schemas aren't that easy.
Two caveats: The book sometimes tells you about snags in subtle ways that you might not notice, 'til you actually slam headlong into them. And there's the occasional issue in the errata, typical for a new book on so complicated a subject.
But to me, that's minor. The book covers a tough subject in detail, and it gives me information that helps me solve problems. That makes it the first book I reach for when I have problems with a schema.
XML Schema Review, February 27 2004
Very good for references, poor for beginners. If you already have a working knowledge of XML schemas and want to go deeper, then this book is for you. Else try something with more problem solving examples.
XML Schema Review, July 22 2003
a very good book for beginners
XML Schema Review, December 12 2002
Exhaustive, covers design and best-practices issues as well as syntax.
Explanation could be quite a bit more lucid in places, though; state diagrams/Venn diagrams could go a good way to supplement text.
Book also heavily uses code examples in a sort of show-don't-tell way, and it is in this context that the code examples errata really really trip you up. I've never had to check out Errata on O'Reilly online catalog just to understand the text, before.
XML Schema Review, August 23 2002
This is definitely the book to learn XML Schema. XML Schema Syntax can be confusing at first, even to some experienced programmers. The author uses clear and concise language to explain everything about the subject. The same example is used throughout the book to give consistency and relevancy. Very good explanation of pattern restriction.
Media reviews
"This book is very useful to XML schema designers and developers?['XML Schema'] provides a great path and excellent guidelines and refining your schema conforming to W3C standards and recommendations."
--Vivek Vaishampayan, Technical Communication, May 2004 (Vol. 51:2)
"This book is a comprehensive tutorial and reference, explaining this toolkit of strongly-typed approaches with object-oriented heritage...Whether you're building your own schemas, interpreting, revising, or integrating schemas created by others, or creating applications which can process schemas, you'll find that this title reaches all the way."
--David Williams, "Australian Personal Computer," April 2003
"Serious Schema sculptors will have this book to hand; I know that I shall be using it a lot, assuming that it does not vanish from my office!"
--Lindsay Marshall, news@UK, Jan 2003
"If you've ever wondered how complex types are defined or how you can use regular expressions inside Schema, this is the book for you."
--PC Plus, Dec 2002
"I would highly recommend this book to any body wanting to learn XML schema. It is well written, and provides a very detailed explanation of the subject, which few books I have seen personally, provide."
--James Forshaw, Northants Linux Users Group July 2002
"'XML Schema' is easily the most complex standard on the Web today. In fact, the World Wide Web Consortium released XML Schema 1.0 in three parts, including a primer, just so developers would have any chance of understanding it. Clearly a good book is needed to cut through the complexity. And the $39.95 'XML Schema', by Eric van der Vlist, comes through, providing detailed but easily understandable information on when, where and how to use 'XML Schema.'"--Jim Rapoza, eWeek, September 6, 2002
"Clearly a good book is needed to cut through the complexity. And the $39.95 'XML Schema,' by Eric van der Vlist, comes through, providing detailed but easily understandable information on when, where and how to use XML Schema. The book is clearly oriented toward developers and authors who already have a good understanding of XML. While the book is pretty dense and complex itself (it is about XML Schema, after all) we found it to be immediately useful. Like most good books in this vein, it provides lots of sample codes and then goes into detail about each element of the code. Another thing we liked is that the book is clearly not a love letter to XML Schema. Van der Vlist points out several weaknesses and limitations in XML Schema, such as its inability to clearly define distinct element types."
--Jim Rapoza, eWeek.com, September 6, 2002
