ABSTRACT
XML, the Extensible Markup Language is a syntax for tagging, or marking-up, textual information. It is a standard, established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that many use when sharing or working with structured information. XML isn’t used by itself, but as a tool to create other data-specific markup languages. One benefit to using XML is that it enables these languages to distinguish the content that is being marked up from its presentation, allowing for greater flexibility and data reuse. The library community has embraced XML and uses it as the foundation for many of their own data-specific markup languages. Perhaps the greatest strength of XML is that it is very easy to start working with and yet, in conjunction with many other XML-related standards and technologies, can also be used to develop complex applications.
