XML Software Guide
July 5th 1998
Last Modified:
January 26, 2002
In the first article in this
XML series, entitled
XML: Structuring Data
for the Web: An Introduction, we saw that XML
(eXtensible Markup Language) is really a trio of specifications --
XML syntax, XLL (XML Linking Language), and XSL (eXtensible Style
Language). In last month's article,
Next Generation HTML: The Big Picture, we explored how various
specifications
(HTML4,
DHTML,
CSS,
DOM,
XML,
etc.) fit into the efforts of the
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
Jump to Table of Contents.
This month, our focus turns to software currently available for
XML: editors, parsers, database support, APIs, and special-purpose
software. With a few noteworthy
exceptions[1],
we have limited our guide to tools which have appeared in 1998, or
have been updated in 1998. Since the
XML 1.0 Recommendation
wasn't finalized until February 10, 1998, we felt older tools might
reflect syntax which is no longer correct; there were several
eleventh-hour changes in the XML specification. (For those who
wish to peruse lists that do not impose this restriction, we've also
included a section of other XML-related software lists.) Since XML
is a rapidly growing area of Web development, we will be updating
our XML Software Guide periodically, so check back each month.
To help you quickly zero in on the tools that are right for you,
we've indicated whether or not the tool is a commercial product, as
well as the platforms for which it is available. You will notice
that much of the XML software is either written in, or meant to be
used with,
Java.
For example,
[freeware for all Java platforms]
means that the software can be downloaded free of charge and should
run on any platform that supports Java (i.e., UNIX, Windows, or
Mac), although a certain version of the JDK (Java Development Kit)
may be required.
You've probably seen countless
Web authoring tools lists before.
However, with XML, editing tools is far from the whole story. Since
XML is ideal for applications external to
browsers
[2], as
well as for specialized data-centric web pages, separate parsers and
APIs are necessary.
This software guide uses a number of acronyms which are explained
in the
Acronym
Expander, which also includes links to more information
on each term.
1: One such exception is Microsoft's XML
parser,
MSXML,
which enables Internet Explorer 4.x to handle XML documents,
although (at the time of this writing) the parser has not been
(publicly) updated since December, 1997.
2: The reasons for the applicability of XML
to non-browser applications are presented in
XML: Structuring Data for the Web: An Introduction.
Submit additions or corrections to Ken Sall
for consideration.
XML Software Guide
XML Software Guide: XML and XSL Editors
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