[XML-DEV Mailing List Archive Home] [By Thread] [By Date] [Recent Entries] [Reply To This Message]

Re: Xml file sizes


xml readability
Having worked with self-defining (binary) data structures in the past, 
I'd say the value of the tool support in XML is very significant.  
Having to write parsers for self-defining, tree-structured, record 
formats is an unpleasant overhead and being able to validate the records 
using DTDs or stylesheets (instead of just processing them and getting a 
nasty surprise from the business logic when they are broken) is very nice.

Keep in mind when thinking about storage efficiency that if you shoehorn 
the data into a database, long datatypes in databases are not 
necessarily stored very efficiently, they are optimised for storage and 
access and only after that for space usage.  XML's verbosity doesn't 
look so bad when your database rowsize is a multiple of 8k or 4k because 
of a long varchar type not packing nicely onto a database storage page.

Greg

Bryce K. Nielsen wrote:

> I'll chime in. Readability is a strong reason, but not the only reason 
> for XML. Extensibility is another. Legacy apps that store data in 
> files will often times be very hardcoded. You can't touch the file 
> format or everything dies. With XML, you can adjust the format (add 
> nodes, child nodes, etc) without breaking anything.
>
> As for real-world applications, here's where I've found it very useful:
> - Config files (use XML instead of INI)
> - Simple storage (like a min-database) for applications
> - Real-time Application Integration
> - Web pages (with XSL)
>
> The best thing I've found about XML is forward-thinking. I don't have 
> to worry too much about "locking" myself into a particular structure. 
> If anything, once the structure changes, only a simple stylesheet is 
> needed to update all my older documents.
>
> Bryce K. Nielsen
> SysOnyx, Inc. (www.sysonyx.com)
> Makers of xmlDig, the XML-SQL Extractor
> http://www.sysonyx.com/products/xmldig
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Byarlay, Wayne A." <wab@p...>
> To: <xml-dev@l...>
> Sent: Monday, November 21, 2005 2:14 PM
> Subject: RE:  Xml file sizes
>
>
> Well, I've certainly received a well-voiced response. It would seem that
> XML's readability is its strongest point. Both by people, and computers.
> If its original design was more for ease-of-use, than straight-out
> efficiency, that would make sense.
>
> Thanks for your input! Though, right now, I cannot think of any
> applications for XML in any of my current projects, I will keep it in
> mind.
>
> wab
>
>
> -----------------------------------------------------------------
> The xml-dev list is sponsored by XML.org <http://www.xml.org>, an
> initiative of OASIS <http://www.oasis-open.org>
>
> The list archives are at http://lists.xml.org/archives/xml-dev/
>
> To subscribe or unsubscribe from this list use the subscription
> manager: <http://www.oasis-open.org/mlmanage/index.php>
>
>

PURCHASE STYLUS STUDIO ONLINE TODAY!

Purchasing Stylus Studio from our online shop is Easy, Secure and Value Priced!

Buy Stylus Studio Now

Download The World's Best XML IDE!

Accelerate XML development with our award-winning XML IDE - Download a free trial today!

Don't miss another message! Subscribe to this list today.
Email
First Name
Last Name
Company
Subscribe in XML format
RSS 2.0
Atom 0.3
 

Stylus Studio has published XML-DEV in RSS and ATOM formats, enabling users to easily subcribe to the list from their preferred news reader application.


Stylus Studio Sponsored Links are added links designed to provide related and additional information to the visitors of this website. they were not included by the author in the initial post. To view the content without the Sponsor Links please click here.

Site Map | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Trademarks
Free Stylus Studio XML Training:
W3C Member
Stylus Studio® and DataDirect XQuery ™are products from DataDirect Technologies, is a registered trademark of Progress Software Corporation, in the U.S. and other countries. © 2004-2013 All Rights Reserved.