XML Parsing

[thelane]

Hi,

I am new to XML and would like to have some sort of simple parser that
would let me format the data into csv or something similiar.

I would prefer if it used a gui or something like that, that enabled
me to filter out fileds etc from the xml fields.

Free software as well.


All help / suggestions is gratefully appreciated.

 

[Joseph Kesselman]

Solution 1: Get an XML parser (multiple free ones exist, in multiple
programming languages) and write an application which uses that parser
to retrieve the data and writes it out in the appropriate formatting.
Most XML parsers present the data as a DOM tree and/or as a SAX event
stream; both are fairly easy to work with.

Solution 2: Get an XSLT processor (multiple free ones exist) and write a
stylesheet which generates the desired output for this kind of input
document. Easier if you can think in terms of rule-driven/functional
solutions, but may have a large learning curve if you're used to
thinking in explicit-loop terms.

Either way: Read a few tutorials, eg the ones at http://www.ibm.com/xml.
What you're asking for is fairly close to standard examples.