If you need to create or use formal descriptions of XML vocabularies, the W3C's XML Schema offers a powerful set of tools for defining acceptable document structures and content. An alternative to DTDs as the way to describe and validate data in an XML environment, XML Schema enables developers to create precise descriptions with a richer set of datatypes?such as booleans, numbers, currencies, dates and times?that are essential for today?s applications.Schemas are powerful, but that power comes with substantial complexity. This concise book explains the ins and outs of XML Schema, including design choices, best practices, and limitations. Particularly valuable are discussions of how the type structures fit with existing database and object-oriented program contexts. With XML Schema, you can define acceptable content models and annotate those models with additional type information, making them more readily bound to programs and objects. Schemas combine the easy interchange of text-based XML with the more stringent requirements of data exchange, and make it easier to validate documents based on namespaces.You?ll find plenty of examples in this book that demonstrate the details necessary for precise vocabulary definitions. Topics include: Foundations of XML Schema syntax Flat, "russian-doll", and other schema approaches Working with simple and complex types in a variety of contexts The built-in datatypes provided by XML Schema Using facets to extend datatypes, including regular expression-based patterns Using keys and uniqueness rules to limit how and where information may appear Creating extensible schemas and managing extensibility Documenting schemas and extending XML Schema capabilities through annotations In addition to the explanatory content, XML Schemaprovides a complete reference to all parts of both the XML Schema Structures and XML Schema Datatypes specifications, as well as a glossary. Appendices explore the relationships between XML Schema and other tools for describing document structures, including DTDs, RELAX NG, and Schematron, as well as work in progress at the W3C to more tightly integrate XML Schema with existing specifications.No matter how you intend to use XML Schema - for data structures or document structures, for standalone documents or part of SOAP transactions, for documentation, validation, or data binding ? all the foundations you need are outlined in XML Schema.

“XML Schema 1.1 has gone from strong data typing to positively stalwart—so powerful it can enforce database level constraints and business rules, so your data transfer code won’t have to. This book covers the 1.1 changes—and more—in its 500 revisions to Priscilla Walmsley’s 10-year best-selling classic. It’s the guide you need to navigate XML Schema’s complexity—and master its power!” —Charles F. Goldfarb For Ten Years the World’s Favorite Guide to XML Schema—Now Extensively Revised for Version 1.1 and Today’s Best Practices! To leverage XML’s full power, organizations need shared vocabularies based on XML Schema. For a full decade, Definitive XML Schema has been the most practical, accessible, and usable guide to working with XML Schema. Now, author Priscilla Walmsley has thoroughly updated her classic to fully reflect XML Schema 1.1, and to present new best practices for designing successful schemas. Priscilla helped create XML Schema as a member of the W3C XML Schema Working Group, so she is well qualified to explain the W3C recommendation with insight and clarity. Her book teaches practical techniques for writing schemas to support any application, including many new use cases. You’ll discover how XML Schema 1.1 provides a rigorous, complete specification for modeling XML document structure, content, and datatypes; and walk through the many aspects of designing and applying schemas, including composition, instance validation, documentation, and namespaces. Then, building on the fundamentals, Priscilla introduces powerful advanced techniques ranging from type derivation to identity constraints. This edition’s extensive new coverage includes Many new design hints, tips, and tricks – plus a full chapter on creating an enterprise strategy for schema development and maintenance Design considerations in creating schemas for relational and object-oriented models, narrative content, and Web services An all-new chapter on assertions Coverage of new 1.1 features, including overrides, conditional type assignment, open content and more Modernized rules for naming and design Substantially updated coverage of extensibility, reuse, and versioning And much more If you’re an XML developer, architect, or content specialist, with this Second Edition you can join the tens of thousands who rely on Definitive XML Schema for practical insights, deeper understanding, and solutions that work.

The art of writing XML schema in a systematic way.

This reference provides detailed examples of every XML schema component, its corresponding schema document element, and all of the associated attributes. The mapping of an XML schema to a relational SQL schema is covered with examples written for Oracle9i. The final chapter is a case study of a campus resource and scheduling system that uses SQL 2000, the .NET framework, XDR schemas, IIS, and Visual Basic. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

This book will help you learn and use XML Schema collections in SQL Server. Prior knowledge of XSD is not required to start with this book, although any experience with XSD will make your learning process easier. This book starts with the basics of XML schemas and then walks you through everything you need to know, with examples and labs, in order to build powerful XML schemas in SQL Server.

The authoritative XML Schema reference and tutorial! Leverage the full power of XML Schema! In-depth coverage of the approved W3C Recommendation Schema design–practical and thorough Transition help for experienced DTD developers Authoritative! By Priscilla Walmsley–a member of the W3C XML Schema Working Group To leverage the full power of XML, companies need shared vocabularies to base their documents and scripts upon. XML Schema makes it possible to create those shared vocabularies-and Definitive XML Schema is the authoritative guide to the standard! Written by Priscilla Walmsley, a member of the W3C working group that created XML Schema, this book explains the W3C Recommendation with unprecedented insight and clarity–and introduces practical techniques for writing schemas to support any B2B, Web service, or content processing application. Coverage includes: How XML Schema provides a rigorous, complete standard for modeling XML document structure, content, and datatypes Working with schemas: Schema composition, instance validation, documentation, namespaces, and more XML Schema building blocks: elements, attributes, and types Advanced techniques: type derivation, model groups, substitution groups, identity constraints, redefinition, and much more An in-depth primer on effective schema design, including naming, document structure, and extensibility considerations Transition guidance for experienced DTD developers Definitive XML Schema brings together expert guidance for schema design, superior approaches to schema development, and the most systematic XML Schema reference on the market. Whether you're a developer, architect, or content specialist, it's the only XML Schema resource you need! "XML Schema is an incredibly powerful-and complex-document schema language, with such new capabilities as strong typing, modularity, inheritance, and identity constraints. This book guides you through the complexity so you can confidently use that power for your own projects." –Charles F. Goldfarb

This book describes the basics of W3C XML Schema (XSD) language, focusing primarily on 1.1 version of the XSD language. XSD 1.1 is a successor of XSD 1.0 language and provides advanced features for XML document validation. The book starts with describing basics of XML, and then describes the abstract model on which XSD schemas are based. It then progressively describes the various XSD language features that are used to write XSD schema documents ranging from the simple ones to much advanced XSD schemas. The book provides complete coverage of every aspect of XSD language, explaining the concepts supported by numerous examples. There are at least three reasons why standardizing such schemas is useful: 1. When two groups are preparing to exchange information using XML documents, a schema gives them a way to agree on what the structure of the documents is to be. 2. Because XML schemas are machine-processable and captured in a standard form, tools can be built to help build XML documents automatically, perhaps by extracting information from databases, or to automatically generate input forms to be presented to users. Similar tools can be used to automatically extract XML information into databases, program APIs, or spreadsheets. 3. When documents are generated or received through a network, validators can be used to check automatically that the rules have been followed. The W3C XML Schema language allows us to document the nesting structure of the elements and attributes in valid documents. It also standardizes types such as integer, decimal, or date that apply to the content of individual attributes or elements. About the Author Mukul Gandhi has been associated with work on XML and XML Schemas since many years. He was involved with the development of XML Schema 1.1 language, while W3C worked on standardizing the 1.1 version of XML Schema language. He has contributed to IBM's work on XML Schema 1.1 language standardization. He is also the member of Apache Xerces2 XML tools project that provides among other things conformant implementations of XSD 1.0 and 1.1 processors.

XML in a Nutshell thoroughly explains the basic rules that all XMNL documents--and all XML document creators--must adhere to. Quick-reference chapters also detail syntax rules and usage examples for the core XML technologies, including XML, DTDs, SPath, XSLT, SAX, and DOM.

Why program Excel? For solving complex calculations and presenting results, Excel is amazingly complete with every imaginable feature already in place. But programming Excel isn't about adding new features as much as it's about combining existing features to solve particular problems. With a few modifications, you can transform Excel into a task-specific piece of software that will quickly and precisely serve your needs. In other words, Excel is an ideal platform for probably millions of small spreadsheet-based software solutions. The best part is, you can program Excel with no additional tools. A variant of the Visual Basic programming language, VB for Applications (VBA) is built into Excel to facilitate its use as a platform. With VBA, you can create macros and templates, manipulate user interface features such as menus and toolbars, and work with custom user forms or dialog boxes. VBA is relatively easy to use, but if you've never programmed before, Programming Excel with VBA and .NET is a great way to learn a lot very quickly. If you're an experienced Excel user or a Visual Basic programmer, you'll pick up a lot of valuable new tricks. Developers looking forward to .NET development will also find discussion of how the Excel object model works with .NET tools, including Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO). This book teaches you how to use Excel VBA by explaining concepts clearly and concisely in plain English, and provides plenty of downloadable samples so you can learn by doing. You'll be exposed to a wide range of tasks most commonly performed with Excel, arranged into chapters according to subject, with those subjects corresponding to one or more Excel objects. With both the samples and important reference information for each object included right in the chapters, instead of tucked away in separate sections, Programming Excel with VBA and .NET covers the entire Excel object library. For those just starting out, it also lays down the basic rules common to all programming languages. With this single-source reference and how-to guide, you'll learn to use the complete range of Excel programming tasks to solve problems, no matter what you're experience level.

Have you ever needed to convert documents from XML to HTML ? Or from one XML vocabulary to another ? Extensible Stylesheet Transformations (XSLT) provide a critical bridge between XML processing and more familiar HTML, as well as between XML vocabularies. XSLT demonstrates how to use this powerful, but complex, tool for a wide variety of conversions. Examples illustrate many different cases and techniques, giving you working code to explore and modify for your own purposes. Originally created for page layout, XSLT has grown into one of the tore technologies used by most developers processing XML. Through clear and entertaining explanations, this book shows you how to use XSLT as a general-purpose translation tool, a system for reorganizing document content, and a tool for generating multiple results (including HTML, VRML, and SVG) from the same content. Though XSLT is extremely useful, it can also be daunting to new users. XSLT uses an XML-based template syntax combined with a terse vocabulary called XPath that identifies how the template applies to the original document. The understanding of " variables " in XSLT is very different from the understanding of " variables " in procedural languages, for instance. Getting started with XSLT is difficult, and advanced techniques require a thorough understanding of how XSLT templates work and interact with one another. XSLT brings it all together, giving developers both a thorough tutorial and a reference. It examines both XSLT and XPath, a critical companion standard, and explores subjects ranging from basic transformations to complex sorting and linking. In addition, the book explores extension functions on various XSLT processors and how to combine multiple documents with XSLT. Examples demonstrate all of the techniques described. Examples also illustrate how to use XSLT to generate a ride variety of target document types, including HTML, SVG, JPEG, Java source code, and XSLT stylesheets.