Special Edition Using XML, Second Edition

Overview of XML

With XML often being held up as such a revolutionary new technology, one common mistake is to assume that XML is a complicated technology. However, when examining the core of the XML 1.0 Recommendation, XML is actually a very simple technology, and it is from that simplicity that XML gains its power.

Although XML has evolved into a family of technologies (which is the focus of this entire book), the core XML 1.0 Recommendation itself is not overly complicated, by design. The idea has always been to create a minimal set of rules that can be followed to allow for maximum flexibility and compatibility.

The Extensible Markup Language has its roots in some older structured markup technology, which has been around since long before ...