Whether your team contracted a project that requires the use of XML or you simply want to play with the technology, this article introduces you to the basics of XML. Many companies have started using XML as a way to exchange data. Governments have standardized on XML as a data-exchange format, and web developers are being required to learn how to work with XML. So it really is in your interest to learn about XML and enhance your skill set. Plus, the soon-to-be-released Macromedia Dreamweaver 8 has native support for creating and editing XML and XSL documents and it allows you to perform client-side and server-side XSL transformations. In this article, I will introduce you to XML, so you are ready to hit the ground running when Dreamweaver 8 ships. I will start by explaining the technology, some of its advantages and disadvantages, and give you examples of where and how to use it.

Requirements

You can follow along with the examples in this article if you have Dreamweaver MX 2004 or later installed, or you can simply read the examples. You can also use any other text editor to use the examples. Other text editors, however, do not include the native XML support that Dreamweaver offers.

Dreamweaver MX 2004 or later (Optional)

• Try
• Buy

• You are not required to have previous knowledge of XML or XSL. This article is intended to introduce you to XML and the fundamentals of XML-based application development.
• I recommend that you have previous knowledge of HTML, WWW, and building web pages.

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