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Oracle has been quite vociferous in its support of XML. It views XML as a portal to the
world of data. It intends to include in its support tight integration of XML in with Oracle 8i.
Its core support in 8i includes:
•
The Oracle XML Parser.
Oracle intends to enable programmers to process XML
documents and/or document fragments.
•
XML Support in
i
FS.
Oracle intends to support XML in its Oracle Internet File System
to enable automated parsing and rendering of data between XML and the database.
These are only tips of the iceberg. Everyone has jumped onto the XML bandwagon. What
are
you
waiting for?
Summary
We’ve given you a lot to think about in this chapter. We’ve tried to present a
comprehensive overview of XML and where it fits in the grand scheme of things. We’ve
also tried to help stimulate you to dream about where you can take it further.
The beauty of XML is in its sheer simplicity. It’s not something that is abstract and difficult
to envision—far from it. Simple things work, and the ubiquitous nature of HTML proves
that incontrovertibly. As Dan Connolly wrote, “XML is like HTML with the training wheels
off” (in the “Web matters” section of
Nature
magazine’s online site). In other words, XML
takes the concepts that millions of people implicitly learned while making Web sites and
develops them a little further to empower all computer users to do more.
Moreover, it’s not just us who believe in XML; virtually every industry leader has pledged
support to XML. With the kind of support that XML has mustered in the last year alone, it
is a sure bet that people who today invest millions as soon as they hear the words
e-
commerce
or
dot-com
are going to be willing to pump money into ventures that use the
buzzword
XML.
Seven years ago, the Internet Revolution began, and its promise of a new future for every
facet of human life was made by all industry pundits. The reality is that we are not there
yet. We’ve certainly come a long way, but we are still at the beginning. HTML was a
tremendous leap forward, but it was not enough. XML fills in where HTML could not. The
support that XML has mustered from all facets of the industry is unprecedented by every
measure. This is a technology that has success written all over it, so much so, that we
will go so far as to say that the only way it could fail is if humanity were to unplug the
Internet.
In a few years, XML is going to be as commonplace as HTML is, and
that’s a good thing
because it means that
now
is the best time to get into it. Those who get there first win the
prize, and the nice part is that everyone gets to share in the winnings. XML is the next
cycle of the information revolution.
