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XML Presentation

Presentation to L3D on XML

by Gerry Stahl and Aaron Martin

March 15, 2000

 

Why XML?

·     open standard

·     human-readable

·     as simple as HTML

·     extensible – can define your own DTD

·     application-independent – good for interoperability exchange of data

What is it used for?

·     as metadata to tag data on web

·     for data interchange

·     for internal structure (e.g., Microsoft PowerPoint slides on Web)

Why use it at L3D ?

To reseed info spaces.

WebGuide: a Java applet (above) showing the threads of discussion notes with an HTML frame (below) displaying the content of one note.

WebGuide – Gulch version for an environmental middle school class

 

JIME: The hierarchy of threads in context of a journal article under review 

JIME: the detail of one note

 

DynaClass: a note with discussion

Sources: a bibliography entry

DynaGloss: a glossary definition

Reseeding dispersed ideas into one information space

 

Data can be exported using code internal to the exporting application or by independent code that parses an HTML output file generated by the application.

The exported XML can be formatted recursively (one note can contain others) or non-recursively (with links from one note to another using XLINK). A recursive format is easier to display using XSL; a non-recursive format is a more faithful representation for importing back into an application like WebGuide that allows multiple links in and out of notes.

 

data for demo in Dynasites at:

http://seed.cs.colorado.edu/dynaClass.displayNode.fcgi$URLinc=1&node=Node41&doc=DLC99

 

demo of data export at:


Open architecture  

<?xml version="1.0"?>

<!-- WEBGUIDE version 1.2 XML RECURSIVE data structure -->

<!-- created 5/25/99 by Gerry Stahl -->

<!-- following is the Document Type Definition: -->

 

<!DOCTYPE DATASET[

 

<!-- DATASET is a collection of NOTES from a threaded discussion database-->

<!-- a DATASET includes the root NOTE of the threaded discussion -->

<!ELEMENT      DATASET (DESCRIPTION?, COMMENT?, NOTE) >

<!ATTLIST      DATASET

SYSTEM         CDATA   #REQUIRED

CREATOR        CDATA   #IMPLIED

DATE           CDATA   #REQUIRED

XML_VERSION    CDATA   "1.0"

 

<!-- NOTE is a tree of information in a DATASET, recursively containing subtrees-->

<!-- a NOTE may contain as children the root NOTEs of its subtrees-->

<!-- if a NOTE has multiple parents, then it appears as multiple NOTEs with the same NID -->

<!ELEMENT      NOTE       (TITLE, CONTENT, NOTES*) >

<!ATTLIST      NOTE

NID            ID      #REQUIRED

NOTE_KIND      CDATA   "Statement"

AUTHOR         CDATA   "Anonymous"

CREATED        CDATA   #REQUIRED

LINK_TYPE     CDATA   "Re"

PERSPECTIVE    CDATA   #IMPLIED

ADDITIONAL1    CDATA   #IMPLIED

ADDITIONAL2    CDATA   #IMPLIED

<!ELEMENT      DESCRIPTION        #PCDATA >

<!ELEMENT      COMMENT            #PCDATA >

<!ELEMENT      TITLE              #PCDATA >

<!ELEMENT      CONTENT            #PCDATA >


<!-- some sample data for testing -->

<DATASET

    SYSTEM="WebGuide"

    CREATOR="GerryStahl"

    DATE="29/09/1999"

    XML_VERSION="1.0" >

    <DESCRIPTION>"Research '99 WebGuide"</DESCRIPTION>

    <COMMENT>="interesting ideas about WebGuide"</COMMENT>

    <NOTE

         KIND="Statement"

         AUTHOR="Anonymous"

         CREATED="05/25/1999"

         TYPE="Re"

         PERSPECTIVE="Gerry's perspective" >

         <TITLE>"Root note"</TITLE>

         <CONTENT>"This is the root note"</CONTENT>

         <NOTE

             KIND="Discussion"

             AUTHOR="Gerry"

             CREATED="05/25/1999"

             TYPE="Re"

             PERSPECTIVE="Gerry's perspective" >

             <TITLE>"A"</TITLE>

             <CONTENT>"note A is the first real note"</CONTENT>

             <NOTE

                 KIND="Comment"

                 AUTHOR="Gerry"

                 CREATED="05/25/1999"

                 TYPE="Re"

                 PERSPECTIVE="Gerry's perspective" >

                 <TITLE>"B"</TITLE>

                 </NOTE>

             </NOTE>

         </NOTE>

</DATASET>

XML displayed in IE 5.0 with default style sheet

 

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