XML list of monsters

[kamosa]

Thank you all, especially andargor. I'm downloading the file now.

 

[gravyboat]

I was hoping someone could explain to me the benefits and possibilities of using XML when creating D&D software utilities. I don't know much about XML except that its used as a sort of data storage format useful for databases. Is accessing of data within XML files fast? Is it common for programs to read and write XML files? What are the benefits of using XML within a program as opposed to writing a class in C# or Java to represent the data stored, such as for spells or monsters? Is it possible to write a utility in C# that neatly displays the monster and spell data in the XML files in a user readable format?

I am really interested in hearing about the possibilities of what can be done with XML in terms of potential D&D utilities.

Thank you,
Gravyboat

 

[Davin]

XML is a method of formatting data so it can be easily transferred from place to place (and understood when it gets there). It doesn't really have anything to do (directly) with D&D or databases or anything like that. It's just for data exchange.

You might like to check out <www.w3schools.org> for an introduction.

 

[pensiv]

Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a human-readable format for describing data that is highly flexible (extensible).
XML is platform independent. Java and C classes can be and have been written to translate the data in XML as described.

Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) is a human-readable language specifically designed for formatting XML data. XSL Transformations (XSLT) is used to transform XML data into another, more user friendly format, such as a web page or spreadsheet. XSL Formatting Objects (XSL-FO) is used to layout XML data like XSLT, but is geared toward formats like PDF.

Mostly XML is used to port information from one format to another. Either moving data from one database to another, or translating database data into a webpage or PDF.