Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2000 Unleashed, Second Edition

Using FOR XML EXPLICIT

For still greater control over the structure of your XML results, use EXPLICIT mode. EXPLICIT mode enables you to design the nesting hierarchy of your resulting XML elements in a precise fashion. But be forewarned: EXPLICIT mode adds a bit of complexity to the query.

If you are like me and try to get things coded in the simplest way possible, you probably won't use EXPLICIT mode too often. Sometimes, however, EXPLICIT mode is the best way to do the job. For example, you might want to combine column results from multiple tables into a single XML element without being tied to the flat XML produced by RAW mode or to the select-list-ordered structure produced by AUTO mode. Or you might need a combination of both attribute and ...