Why XForms Are Needed

As a reader of this book, you are aware of the increased importance of XML as the widely accepted emerging basis for today's and tomorrow's Web.

HTML forms were created long before XML first reached W3C Recommendation status in 1998. Therefore, HTML forms are not designed with the needs of XML and the XML application languages in mind. It is possible for HTML forms to be extended to accommodate some needs of an XML-based Web through custom programming, but achieving that can significantly increase the burden on Web developers.

As data is increasingly exchanged between applications as XML, the lack of any standard way to easily convert data entered into HTML forms to a standard XML format for transmission is becoming a more ...

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