Java and XML

Book excerpt: Java and XML, 3rd Edition, shows you how to cut through all the hype about XML and put it to work. It teaches you how to use the APIs, tools, and tricks of XML to build real-world applications. The result is a new approach to managing information that touches everything from configuration files to web sites. After two chapters on XML basics, including XPath, XSL, DTDs, and XML Schema, the rest of the book focuses on using XML from your Java applications. This third edition of Java and XML covers all major Java XML processing libraries, including full coverage of the SAX, DOM, StAX, JDOM, and dom4j APIs as well as the latest version of the Java API for XML Processing (JAXP) and Java Architecture for XML Binding (JAXB). The chapters on web technology have been entirely rewritten to focus on the today's most relevant topics: syndicating content with RSS and creating Web 2.0 applications. You'll learn how to create, read, and modify RSS feeds for syndicated content and use XML to power the next generation of websites with Ajax and Adobe Flash. Topics include: The basics of XML, including DTDs, namespaces, XML Schema, XPath, and Transformations The SAX API, including all handlers, filters, and writers The DOM API, including DOM Level 2, Level 3, and the DOM HTML module The JDOM API, including the core and a look at XPath support The StAX API, including StAX factories, producing documents and XMLPull Data Binding with JAXB, using the new JAXB 2.0 annotations Web syndication and podcasting with RSS XML on the Presentation Layer, paying attention to Ajax and Flash applications If you are developing with Java and need to use XML, or think that you will be in the future; if you're involved in the new peer-to-peer movement, messaging, or web services; or if you're developing software for electronic commerce, Java and XML will be an indispensable companion.