XML in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition [Paperback]

Elliotte Rusty Harold (Author), W. Scott Means (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 2002 | ISBN-10: 0596002920 | ISBN-13: 978-0596002923 | Edition: Second Edition

This powerful new edition provides developers with a comprehensive guide to the rapidly evolving XML space. Serious users of XML will find topics on just about everything they need, from fundamental syntax rules, to details of DTD and XML Schema creation, to XSLT transformations, to APIs used for processing XML documents. Simply put, this is the only reference of its kind among XML books.

Whether you're a Web designer using SVG to add vector graphics to web pages, or a C++ programmer using SOAP to serialize objects into a remote database, XML in a Nutshell thoroughly explains the basic rules that all XML documents -- and all XML document creators -- must adhere to, including:

• Essentials of the core XML standards: With this book, you can develop an understanding of well-formed XML, DTDs, namespaces, Unicode, and W3C XML Schema quickly.
• Key technologies used mainly for narrative XML documents such as web pages, books, and articles: You'll gain a working knowledge of XSLT, Xpath, Xlink, Xpointer, CSS, and XSL-FO.
• Technologies for building data-intensive XML applications, and for processing XML documents of any kind: One of the most unexpected developments in XML has been its enthusiastic adoption for structured documents used for storing, and exchanging used by a wide variety of programs. This book will help you understand the tools and APIs needed to write software that processes XML, including the event-based Simple API for XML (SAX2) and the tree-oriented Document Object Model (DOM).

Quick-reference chapters also detail syntax rules and usage examples for the core XML technologies, including XML, DTDs, Xpath, XSLT, SAX, and DOM. If you need explanation of how a technology works, or just need to quickly find the precise syntax for a particular piece, this up-to-date edition is ready with the information.

XML in a Nutshell is an essential guide for developers who need to create XML-based file formats and data structures for use in XML documents. This is one book you'll want to close at hand as you delve into XML.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Continuing in the tradition of the Nutshell series, XML in a Nutshell provides a dense tutorial on its subject, as well as a useful day-to-day reference. While the reader isn't expected to have prior expertise in XML, this book is most effective as an add-on to a more introductory tutorial because of its relatively fast pace.

The authors set out to systematically--and rapidly--cover the basics of XML first, namely the history of the markup language and the various languages and technologies that compose the standard. In this first section, they discuss the basics of XML markup, Document Type Definitions (DTDs), namespaces, and Unicode. From there, the authors move into "narrative-centric documents" in a section that appropriately focuses on the application of XML to books, articles, Web pages and other readable content.

This book definitely presupposes in the reader an aptitude for picking up concepts quickly and for rapidly building cumulative knowledge. Code examples are used--only to illustrate the particular point in question--but not in excess. The book gets into "data-centric" XML, exploring the difference between the object-driven Document Object Model (DOM) and the event-driven Simple API for XML (SAX). However, these areas are a little underpowered and offer a bit less detail about this key area than the reader will expect.

At the core of any Nutshell book is the reference section, and the installment found inside this text is no exception. Here, the XML 1.0 standard, XPath, XSLT, DOM, SAX, and character sets are covered. Some material that is covered earlier in the book--such as Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)--is not re-articulated, however. XML in a Nutshell is not the only book on XML you should have, but it is definitely one that no XML coder should be without. --Stephen W. Plain

Topics covered:

• XML history
• Document Type Definitions (DTDs)
• Namespaces
• Internationalization
• XML-based data formats
• XHTML
• XSL
• XPath
• XLink
• XPointer
• Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
• XSL-FO
• Document Object Model (DOM)
• Simple API for XML (SAX)

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

'It is truly an amazing book '- Greek TeX Friends Newsletter, August 2001 '...there is the usual thoroughness one associates with O'Reilly publications. The coverage is totally comprehensive, and all the data is displayed in an attractive and consistent format.... It contains all the basics of the XML standard. Serious web developers will find topics ranging from the most basic syntax rules, to the details of document type definition (DTD) creation. For more advanced users, they also include details of Extensible Stylesheet Transformation (XSLT) and the document object model (DOM). MANTEX Information Design --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 640 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; Second Edition edition (June 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596002920
• ISBN-13: 978-0596002923
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.2 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,007,448 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Stranded on an island & allowed one XML book, this is it! February 3, 2001

By Sojourner

Format:Paperback

Blaise Pascal once wrote "I have made this letter longer than usual, only because I have not had the time to make it shorter". Writing a book on XML is quite an undertaking. Writing a quick reference that not only provides expert coverage on XML and its associated technologies but does so concisely, practically, and comprehensively is a super human feat! Amazingly, the authors of "XML In A Nutshell" have accomplished just that and it shows.

One of the authors, Elliotte Rusty Harold, is no stranger to the technology. He is an early adopter who has written two previous XML books (and several good Java books) and created a web site devoted to XML (Cafe con Leche).

This book is divided into 4 parts. The first covers the essentials of XML including XML syntax, DTD and namespaces. The second covers 'Narrative Centric Documents' involving XSLT, CSS, XLinks, XPointers and XPath. The third covers 'Data Centric XML, ' involving DOM and SAX. The final part is a quick reference to all the above. Each part contains tutorials that are concisely written and packed with practical examples. Beginners can use it to jump-start their learning experience and experts can use this as a indispensable ready reference.

XML Schema is mentioned but not covered in this book.

Hats off to O'Reilly Associates for producing a professionally attractive, well-designed and portable book. It is comfortable to read and to hold. Stranded on a island and allowed only one XML book, this is it!

38 of 42 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Good reference, but where was the editor? February 24, 2001

By Maurice Reeves

Format:Paperback

As usual, this O'Reilly book makes a good reference into XML and is chock full of information. HOWEVER, as it seems to have been the case lately, this book was not very well edited, almost as if they pushed it through to get published.

Examples:

Page 35: ?, *, + are all listed as allowing zero or one element, where they are actually each unique.

Page 133: The authors show linking in an XSL Stylesheet in an XML Document and they list the type of linked in document as "text/xml" which will NOT produce the desired result. They type should actually be "text/xsl". (this can be a quite frustrating error to debug)

Similar examples are scattered throughout, plus their decision to not even discuss XML Schemas leaves me a bit puzzled, but I knew that when I bought the book so I can complain too much.

If you need a good reference to XML, and you can overlook small errors, then go ahead and purchase the book. If the errors bug you then I suggest you wait for the second edition.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Good book if you know what to expect . . . August 6, 2002

By Irrational Exuberance

Format:Paperback

Over the years, I have used several books in the nutshell series and I have always found them to be useful. However if you buy any nutshell book and more specifically the "XML in a nutshell" book with the intention of learning XML from scratch, then you will be disappointed. This book is meant to be a pocket reference for those who know XML and don't want a huge book on their desk.

This book scratches the surface of several XML topics like DTDs,XLink,XPointer,DOM,SAX,CSS etc, but doesn't explore any subject in detail. However one glaring omission is XML schema.

If you are a techie trying to learn XML or an experienced professional looking to enhance your understanding of XML and the related technologies, then Professional XML from Wrox press is a much better bet of your money.

Overall the most useful section of this book is the reference section at the end and is well worth the money if what you want is a good reference book.