XML Summer School 2008

Overview

The Hands-on Introduction to XML is designed to introduce you to the many and varied aspects of XML design, processing and delivery through practical, hands-on lessons during which you will create, edit & process your own XML documents.

You will learn how to create data structures using an XML editor, create an XML schema model and parse/validate the document structure. In addition, you will have the opportunity to gain an understanding of the latest XML tools and technologies in the marketplace, so that you can develop and implement your own XML solutions. The three day course is based around the 'real life' scenario of Erasmus Swift, a new age philosopher who decides to build a web site using XML technology. It is designed to be practical, informative and fun!

Learning Objectives

After completing the course, beginners will know enough about XML to enjoy the more advanced courses at the Summer School. You will learn:

How content is marked up in XML
Validation using XML schemas
Transformation with XSLT
How to use XML tools for editing and transformation
How standard Office applications can use XML
The capabilities of native XML and relational databases
How to search with XPath and XQuery
Paginated output with XSL-FO
Service Oriented Architectures (web services)

Who Should Attend

The course is suitable for newcomers to XML or anyone wanting to gain a more practical grasp of the fundamental concepts of the XML family of standards. It is suitable for those who will be working 'hands-on' with XML technology in the future, but also for managers, designers and strategists who need to gain an appreciation of how XML works, and what it can be used to achieved. To tackle the exercises you need to be computer literate and able to use Windows and basic office applications (word processor, spreadsheet, etc).

Novices may also benefit from the short XML Primer course, which is included in the cost of the three day course (Sunday 22nd July) and takes a whistle-stop tour of the topics covered in practical detail on this Hands-on Introduction to XML.

Faculty

This course is prepared and delivered by an expert faculty, including:

Jim Gabriel (CSW Group Ltd)
Mark Stone (CSW Group Ltd)
Kevin Wise (CSW Group Ltd)
Gary Cornelius (CSW Group Ltd)

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Curriculum

Module 1 - The Wonderful World of XML

1.1 Magical Mystery Tour

Runs through the scenario (Use Case) that will be used throughout the course, showing XML technology in action. Once you've completed the course you will have gained enough knowledge to use the applications shown in this tour of XML technology.

This first lesson provides a helicopter view of the 'real life' scenario and a practical demonstration of the full range of XML technology you will encounter in the rest of the course.

1.2 First Close Encounter

Understand the fundamentals of XML as a mark-up language for structured information, including well-formed XML documents, elements and attributes.

You will learn how to:

Create simple XML documents using standard desktop tools
Use XML elements and attributes to structure the information in a document
Check that an XML document is 'well-formed'

Covers the basic concepts of XML document mark-up.

1.3 Language, Truth and Logic

XML may seem an ideal technology solution, but as with any other technology, its choice as the technical basis for a solution should be driven by the business needs and detailed requirements

You will learn how to:

Create a schema to define the rules governing the structure of documents
Define the allowable elements and attributes for your XML structures
Use standard tools to validate documents using the schema you create
Use different schema languages to meet different requirements
Requirements for managing information, and how XML addresses them

This lesson provides an introduction to XML document validation using a variety of standard schema languages.

Module 2 - Turning it Into Something Else

2.1 Through the Looking Glass

Introduces the basic concepts of XSLT and gain an understanding of what more can be achieved (and how much more there is to learn!)

You will learn how to:

Use XSLT to transform source XML structures to produce XML and non-XML output
Use the XPath standard with XSLT to locate nodes in the XML source
Create XSLT stylesheets using 'push' and 'pull' approaches

Provides a brief overview of the third key component of XML technology (the other two being the XML Language itself and XML Schemas).

2.2 Keeping up Appearances

This session introduces using the XSL-FO standard to create paginated views of XML documents, and using SVG to create visual representation of statistical data. It also looks at using XHTML and CSS for delivering content as webpages.

You will learn how to:

Set up XSLT transformations to create XSL-FO documents
Run a Formatting Objects Processor to create a paginated view (in PDF)
Identify open source and commercial tools for processing XSL-FO
Generate graphics from XML
Build simple WebPages

You will understand the flexibility and opportunity for creating paginated output in real time using the XSLT knowledge from the previous sessions.

Module 3 - Lab Sessions for Further Exploration and More Advanced Topics

3.1 Lab Session One

In the previous two days you will have been introduced to a significant number of new technologies. This session provides the opportunity for further exploration and for you to develop an in-depth understanding of specific topics of your choice. Alternatively you can work through hands on exercises you may not have finished.

The instructors will be on-hand throughout the session to answer any questions and provide assistance where needed.

Further hands-on exercise material will be available covering the following subject areas:

XML Schema
XSLT
XSL-FO, SVG, CSS & XHTML

3.2 The Structure of Life

This advanced session discusses how XML is used in industry specific environments.

Learn about the use of specific XML Vocabularies and how they can be used to exchange information in different industries. Experience how structured XML data is now the basis for all common word processing applications.

You will also learn about both free and commercial XML tools and authoring environments.

3.3 Lab Session Two

After lunch there will be a second practical hands-on session allowing you to practise any of the previous material, and explore topics in more technical details.

Further materials will be available to allow you to practise some of the topics discussed in session 3.2, these include:

Viewing XML in databases
Use different XML authoring tools
Trying out different XML tooling

3.4 No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

In this final advanced session you will learn about how XML plays a key role in the management of Service Orientated Architectures. The session will cover XML Web Services, Web Application Programming Interfaces.

The session will end with a discussion on the principles of Web v2.0 covering XML application "mash-ups" and some live examples how XML lets you catch a bus on time or finds you a restaurant from your geo-location.

You will learn: