XML Hacks (Hacks)

Rating:
Summary: helpful supplement
Review: I'm familiar with XML and have found this book to be helpful. Not a book to learn XML, it is a place to pick up new information that can help to complete a toolbox already in the making. There were some hints to bridge gaps between what I want to do and what I know how to do. I plan to have it nearby to make my work easier and faster.

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Summary: 100 Cool Hints and Tips
Review: If you've ever tried to go to a web page automatically and then parse the information by examining the string you got back, you can appreciate XML. While not perfect XML is probably the most practical option for packaging data that can be read by both humans and computers.

As with the other O'Reilly Hacks books, this one contains 100 hints, tips and suggestions on on how to get more out of XML.

I find that whenever I read one of their Hacks books I pick up something useful that just happens to fit the problem I'm working on at the moment. This one was no exception. Great idea! Great Books.

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Summary: Do [Task] with [Other Object]
Review: Nothing irritates me as much as the industries gratuitous use of the word "hack". I won't say more on this topic other than to advise you that any time you see the word "hack" in this book, substitute it for "tip", "task", or "how to". Once that is understood, this title takes on a whole new feel and its usefulness is made clearer.

Anyone not already familiar with XML, its creation and use, should probably not pick up this book. However, if you are using XML documents a lot, the chances are that this book will yield a resolution method for most of the XML file transformation, modification or parsing need you may have. This method, however, typically requires the use of a third party utility, application, or script (a great many of the tips are titled "Do [something] using [something else]"). A quick flip through the table of contents reveals at least 35 different utilities required to the complete the associated tasks - which is OK if you don't mind incorporating "black box" solutions into your environment. There are also many "see this book" notations within this title as well, so if you find a solution to a need, but require more than what the tip tells you, you may need to make additional purchases.

Overall, a good read for anyone that already knows and makes heavy use of XML; you're sure to walk away with something new.


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Summary: Another excellent Hacks title...
Review: O'Reilly has delivered another excellent title in the Hacks series. This time it's XML Hacks by Michael Fitzgerald. While not as "fun" as, say, the Digital Photography Hacks book, it's just as useful if working with XML is something you do as part of your IT job.

Chapter breakout: Looking At XML Documents; Creating XML Documents; Transforming XML Documents; XML Vocabularies; Defining XML Vocabularies with Schema Language; RSS and Atom; Advanced XML Hacks

For those not familiar with the Hacks series, each book contains 100 tips, techniques, and plain cool things you can do with the technology. Some will be things you already know, some will be things you aren't quite ready for yet, and others will be ones that you just can't wait to try out as they solve a problem you've been living with for far too long.

There were two areas I liked in this book. The Creating and Transforming chapters introduce a number of software packages, both commercial and free, that can help you manage the process of working with your XML files in something more elegant than Notepad. The RSS and Atom chapter is also cool as I use RSS in my blog feed, and this will help me understand and enhance that feed.

I've yet to find a bad Hacks title, and this is no exception. Very good material.

Rating:
Summary: Very wide breadth of topics
Review: Very useful if you already deal with XML and need help with occasional tricky points. While you could try to learn XML from this book, I wouldn't suggest it. Whereas, if you already have some familiarity with DTDs, schemas and other topics like SOAP and Open Office, then the book is potentially far more useful.

Perhaps the most intricate parts of the book deal with using XSLT to process XML documents. Trouble is, the XSLT usage can be very convoluted and non-obvious, unless you know it thoroughly. The hacks Fitzgerald describe that involve XSLT are neat. But, perhaps by necessity, they only hint at the depths beneath.

Overall, the book shows the ever-growing scope of XML. From interacting with SQL databases to the Microsoft Office suite, to news feeds like RSS. The book is excellent motivation for gaining fluency in XML.