Using XML with Legacy Business Applications

Tips for Dealing with Other Navigation Problems

The two problems we just looked at are perhaps among the ones that most vex users of certain EDI management systems. However, these problems are by no means the only ones. Keeping the following tips in mind may make life a bit easier for you when you're dealing with such problems.

• Start with the result! Use a rule-based approach and code your first xsl:template to reflect the overall structure of your result document. Use xsl:call-template by name if you need to set up some branches in the result tree that bear no relation to anything in the source tree. Use iterative processing with xsl:apply-templates when you do have a correspondence between source and result Elements.

• Within an xsl:template you ...