W3C XML Pointer, XML Base and XML Linking (original) (raw)
The XML Linking Working Group has completed its work and is no longer active. The XML Activity Statement discusses the W3C's work on XML as a whole; theXML Linking Working Group's final charter covers its last set of work on XML Linking and XPointer in more detail. Responsibility for maintenance of documents issued by the WG rests with the XML Core Working Group in the first instance.
A public registry for XPointer schemes is available.
Check the Implementation Chart.
XML Linking andXML Base reached Recommendation status on June 27th 2001
XPointer reached Recommendation status on 25 March 2003, in three parts: XPointer Framework,XPointer element() scheme and XPointer xmlns() scheme
XML Linking Language (XLink)
Description
This specification defines the XML Linking Language (XLink), which allows elements to be inserted into XML documents in order to create and describe links between resources. It uses XML syntax to create structures that can describe the simple unidirectional hyperlinks of today's HTML, as well as more sophisticated links.
W3C Status
- Current version: Recommendation 1.0, June 27th 2001
- Proposed Recommendation , December 20 2000
- the XLink CR DoC
- Disposition of Last Call comments
- Last Call 21 February 2000, last call ended 20 March
- Feb '99: W3C Note: XML XLink Requirements Version 1.0
- Jul '99: W3C Note: XML Linking Language (XLink) Design Principles
- Apr '97: initial XML Linking Working Draft
- XML Linking: An introduction
by Steven J. DeRose - working group: XML Linking
- feedback: www-xml-linking-comments
Documentation and associated resources
- discussion: xlxp-dev started Dec '98archive,xml-dev, comp.text.xml
- Harvesting RDF Statements from XLinks W3C Note 29 September 2000
- Presentation at XML'99 Dec 1999 (somewhat outdated)
- XML Linking: An Executive Summary , by Eve Maler
- Robin Cover's xlink implementation info page
- The XLink/XPointer page at XMLSoftware
- Simon St.Laurent's XLink Resources Page
- Zvon maintains an XLink reference including examples
- Melonfire provides an XLink tutorial online.
Implementations
- The open source XBRLAPIXLink processor provides comprehensive support for identifying XLink related-events during SAX parsing of XML streams. The Java library and documentation is available from Sourceforge.
- X2X from empolis UK Ltd. is an XML XLink Engine. X2X allows linking between documents and information resources without needing to change the resources that are being linked. X2X removes the requirement to insert link information inside document content. The Links are NOT in the document.
- Fujitsu XLink Processor : Fujitsu XLink Processor, which is developed by Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., is an implementation of XLink and XPointer.
- xlinkit.com : is a lightweight application service which provides rule-based XLink generation and checks the consistency of distributed documents and web content. You tell xlinkit.com the information you want to link and rules that relate the information. xlinkit.com will generate the links that you can then use for navigation. It will also diagnose inconsistent information.
- Mozilla: The Opensource browser has support for XLinks simple links.
- Amaya: The W3C editor/browser now supports XLinks simple links too.
- XTooX is a free XLink processor that turns extended, out-of-line links into inline links. It takes as its input a linkbase - a document containing only XLinks - and puts the links into the referenced documents. XTooX is available under the GNU Lesser General Public License.
XML Base
Description
This specification proposes syntax for providing the equivalent of HTML BASE functionality generically in XML documents by defining an XML attribute named xml:base.
W3C Status
- Current version: Recommendation 1.0, June 27th 2001
- Proposed REC 20 December 2000
- the XML Base CR DoC
- XML Base Disposition of Last Call comments for both Last Call periods
- XML Base Disposition of Last Call comments for the first Last Call period
- working group: XML Linking
- feedback: www-xml-linking-comments
Documentation and associated resources
Implementations
XML Pointer Language (XPointer)
Description
This work defines the XML Pointer Language (XPointer), the language to be used as a fragment identifier for any URI-reference that locates a resource of Internet media typetext/xml or application/xml.
XPointer has been split into a framework for specifying location schemes, and three schemes: element(), xmlns() and xpointer(). The framework and the first two schemes form the XPointer Recommendation, and provide a minimal inventory of mechanisms.
The xpointer() scheme, which is based on the XML Path Language (XPath), is still under development. It supports addressing into the internal structures of XML documents. It allows for traversals of a document tree and choice of its internal parts based on various properties, such as element types, attribute values, character content, and relative position.
W3C Status
- Recommendation, published 25 March 2003: XPointer Framework, XPointer element() scheme and XPointer xmlns() scheme.
- Working Draft, published 19 September 2002: XPointer xpointer() scheme
- Proposed Recommendations, published 13 November 2002: XPointer Framework, XPointer element() scheme and XPointer xmlns() scheme.
- Working draft of now-separate XPointer xpointer() scheme, published 10 July 2002: XPointer xpointer() scheme
- Second Last Call, published on 10 July 2002, split into parts:XPointer Framework, XPointer element() scheme and XPointer xmlns() scheme
- First CR: published as a Candidate Recommendation, 11 September 2001. CR period ends 4 March 2002.
- Disposition of second Last Call comments
- Second last call version: Reenter Last Call 8 january 2001 till 29 january
- the XPointer CR DoC
- Disposition of Last Call comments
- Feb '99: W3C Note: XML XPointer Requirements Version 1.0
- working group: XML Linking
- feedback: www-xml-linking-comments
Documentation and associated resources
- discussion: xlxp-dev started Dec '98archive,xml-dev, comp.text.xml
- Presentation at XML'99 Dec 1999 (somewhat outdated)
- Zvon maintains an XPointer reference including examples
- An XPointer testsuite is available from libxml
- Sun's declaration on patent 5,659,729 and XPointer
- Summary of IPR statements by all Working Group members
Implementations
- Fujitsu XLink Processor : Fujitsu XLink Processor, which is developed by Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., is an implementation of XLink and (almost all of) XPointer.
- libxml : the Gnome XML library has a beta implementation of XPointer. The full syntax is supported but the testsuite does not cover all aspects yet.
- 4XPointer : this is an XPointer Processor Written in Python byFourthought, Inc.
- At the University of Bologna two different implementations of XPointer are in progress, one in Javascript for ASP pages and another in Java.
- XPointerLib, from the Connexions project, a mozdev.org project providing XPointer support for Mozilla / Netscape 7 / Phoenix browsers. It is an XPCOM service written in JavaScript that creates and resolves a subset of the XPointer language.
Henry S. Thompson
Created by Dan Connolly April 2000 Revision:1.62Revision: 1.62 Revision:1.62 Date:2005/05/1212:49:23Date: 2005/05/12 12:49:23 Date:2005/05/1212:49:23