■Note XML distinguishes between two related terms: child node and descendant node. Understanding the
difference is a key to understanding how XPath expressions work. A child node is a contained node that’s just
one level below the parent. A descendant node is a contained node that’s nested at any level. In other words,
the term descendant node includes child nodes, and the children of the child nodes, and their children, and so
on. In the DVD list example, <Title> is a child of <DVD> and a descendant of <DVD> and <DvdList>, but it’s
not a child of <DvdList>.
Table 14-2. Basic XPath Syntax
Expression Meaning
/ Searches ...
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