Web Design in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition

Examples of XML Technology

With XML’s ability to allow customized tagging systems, it’s not surprising that it is finding a wide variety of uses. It has already made a big impact on the Internet since its formal introduction in 1998. This section takes a look at just a few of the ways XML is being put to work.

Standard XML Languages

The World Wide Web Consortium monitors standard XML applications (languages written according to the rules of XML) that have an impact on how media is presented over the Web, thus changing the Web’s capabilities. In fact, virtually all new web-related technologies and languages developed by the W3C follow the rules of XML. This section looks at the more prominent developments.

Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL)

SMIL (pronounced “smile”) is an XML language for combining audio, video, text, and graphics in a precise, synchronized fashion. It is discussed more thoroughly in Chapter 27.

Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG)

XML has typically been used to define the structure of text elements within a document; however, many groups are working on ways in which it could be used to define graphical information as well. The W3C is developing the Scalable Vector Graphic (SVG) standard. According to the W3C:

SVG is a language for describing two-dimensional graphics in XML. SVG allows for three types of graphic objects: vector graphic shapes (e.g., paths consisting of straight lines and curves), images and text. Graphical objects can be grouped, styled, ...