A file with the .xml extension is an Extensible Markup Language file (Extensible Markup Language – XML). These are really just plain text files that use custom tags to describe the structure and other features of the document.
What is XML file?
XML, short for “eXtensible Markup Language”, was published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) in 1998 to meet the challenges of large-scale electronic publishing. Since then, it has become one of the most widely used formats for sharing structured information between people, computers, and networks. Because XML can be read and interpreted by humans as well as computer software.
However, the main purpose of XML is to store data in a way that can be easily read and shared between software applications. Because its format is standardized, XML can be shared across systems or platforms, both locally and over the Internet, and recipients can still parse the data.
XML files contain XML code and end with the “.xml” file extension. It contains tags that define not only how the document is structured but also how the document is stored and transported over the Internet.
Let’s see a basic example of an XML file below. You can also click here to view the file directly in your browser.
As you can see, this file includes plain text and tags. Plain text is displayed in black and tags are displayed in green.
Plain text is the actual data being stored. In this example, the XML is storing student names as well as test scores associated with each student.
While plain text represents data, tags indicate what that data is. Each tag represents a type of data, like “first name”, “last name” or “score”, and tells the computer what to do with the plain text data within it. The user cannot see the tag, only the software can see it.
Advantages of XML
Using XML files is beneficial for many reasons such as:
Readability
For a data analyst, data must be easily accessible and readable. XML files are easy to understand because they use human language with actual words instead of computer language. For example, the XML name tag is clearly defined and explains the data. Each tag is placed before its data, so the information is neat and organized. Additionally, because data is simply exchanged with the XML markup language, computers easily process XML files.
Compatibility
XML files are Java compatible and fully portable, which means you can access and move data at any time and from any location. All you need are applications that can process XML, then you can store and transmit your data.
Custom
As an extensible markup language, XML allows users to create their own tags or use tags created by other users. If you are using tags from other users, you will need to ensure that the tags are using the domain’s natural language and that they have the features you require. Users can create an unlimited number of tags in XML.
Common uses of XML
XML has many uses across many websites and applications. Some common uses of XML include:
Web publishing
With XML, users can create and customize interactive web pages. When data is stored in XML, you can manipulate the content for many different users or devices. You need to make sure you check the stylesheet handling throughout the process. It can be useful to use an extensible stylesheet language conversion processor, which allows you to convert XML files into other layouts, such as HTML for web pages. In a business, using XML in this way would be the job of a web developer.
Web Actions
XML can be used to search the web and automate tasks. This way, XML checks the information in the file, which makes it easier for you to get top results when you do a web search. For example, if a user performs a web search for an author named Jim Green using HTML, the search results page may show other occurrences of the term “green” in addition to the author’s name. But if you use XML, web searches are limited to the information you want, which is the information found in the tag.
General applications
All types of applications can benefit from XML because it provides a streamlined method of accessing information. This simple process allows both applications and devices to use, store, transmit, and display data. For example, in the workplace, data architects and programmers use XML every day.
How to open XML files
There are a few ways you can open XML files directly such as opening and editing them with a text editor, viewing files using any web browser or using a website that allows you to view, edit and even convert them to other formats.
Use a text editor if you work frequently with XML files
Since XML files are really just text files, you can open them in any text editor. The problem is, many text editors — like Notepad — are not designed to display XML files with their proper structure. You can use Notepad to open XML files and quickly view them, but there are better tools for working with these files. To open an XML file in Notepad, right-click the XML file you want to open, point to “Open with” on the context menu, and then click the “Notepad” option.
Note: The example here we use is on Windows, but it can still be done on other operating systems. Look for a third-party text editor designed to support XML files on other operating systems.
The XML file is opened but as you can see, it loses most of the original formatting and puts the entire content into two rows of the document.
Although Notepad is useful for quickly checking XML files, it breaks the original format of the file. Use a more advanced tool like Notepad++, which will highlight syntax and format the file the way it was formatted.
Use a web browser to view structured data
If you don’t edit XML files but just need to view them, then the browser you are using is very suitable for this job. And in fact, your default browser can be set as the default XML file viewer. Therefore, double click on the XML file to open it in the browser.
If not, you can right-click on the file to find the option to open the file with any application you want. Just choose your web browser from the list of programs.
When the file opens, you will see neatly structured data. It doesn’t look as good in the color-coded code view when opened with Notepad++ but better when opened with Notepad.
Use the online editor to view, edit or convert XML files
If you occasionally want to edit XML files and don’t want to download a new text editor, or if you need to convert XML files to another format, there are a number of rich online XML editors available for free. Sites like TutorialsPoint.com, XMLGrid.net, and CodeBeautify.org all allow you to view and edit XML files. Once you’ve made your edits, you can download the changed XML file or even convert the file to another format.
Use Excel
You may be wondering how to open an XML file in Excel. You may be surprised to learn that this is possible. However, it should be noted that this option is suitable as long as you do not have too many nested tags in your XML file.
Below, we will quickly see the steps to open XML files in Excel:
- 1. Open MS Excel and click File > Open.
- 2. Browse to the location where the XML file is located and click Open to open the file.
- 3. A pop-up window with 3 options is displayed. Select the As an XML table button.
- 4. This will open and display the XML file as an Excel table. The tags used in the XML file are actually used to convert it into an Excel table for display. This can sometimes cause display problems when there are too many nested tags.
Use XML Explorer
There are quite a few XML file readers available to open and view XML files. XML Explorer is an XML viewer that can handle large XML files, which can be difficult to open with Excel.
Your computer does not understand or read your input literally, but processes it in a different language used by programmers to define applications and games, making interactions possible. Okay. There is a universal code that both machines and humans can understand, which is XML. Specialized applications are used to view them, with XML Explorer being a suitable example.
Visually, the app is well organized with most of the space dedicated to code, while another panel is used to display expressions, namespaces, and any errors that may occur. . Additionally, you can attach an additional panel to your workspace to set some settings at your disposal.
Adding files is as easy as dragging them across the main window, with the ability to add multiple files at once, thanks to smart tab support for opening individual projects. By default, expressions and functions are collapsed, with formatting preserved. If you happen to see the settings panel displayed, you may want to turn on syntax highlighting to make it easier to identify.
Code is analyzed immediately and if any errors are detected, the system points out what and where, with options to resolve them simply by double-clicking on the specific item. Additionally, there is a dedicated field that allows you to launch XPath expressions and even store them as favorites for later use.
To work better with XPath expressions, the application allows you to import and export child node definitions, as well as choose whether to display them as tooltips. Next to the files, you can add a URL for the code to be retrieved. If you also want to edit, there is an option to open the project in the editor, but no ability to change the default project.
Keeping an active editor is very useful, especially since there are many different options for copying code or parts of it. They can be summarized as a whole, decoded as Base64, external XML format, and several others related to XPath nodes and attributes.
