The Collected ADT Works of Uche Ogbuji
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For the past two years, writer, poet, and 'real' football player Uche Ogbuji
has expounded, often humorously, on XML and Web services on the pages of
Application Development Trends and on our Web site. Click below to read
articles and columns from our archives. |
XML's growing
pains
XML 1.0 was developed by a roundtable of SGML veterans,
the worthy founding elders of the phenomenon that XML has become. The result of
their initial burst of energy was the first generation of XML technologies. The
elders always said that XML 1.0 was but one part of a foundational trio
comprising XML Core (syntax), XML Stylesheets and XML Linking, but it didn't
take long for things to spiral out of control.
XML circles
the globe
One
of the most misunderstood aspects of XML is its basis in Unicode. I can
understand that because Unicode is a tough subject for people who are used to
thinking of strings from a European language point of view (and even for many
used to more complex character models). But don’t even think of using XML
without understanding its concept of text. And if XML’s text model is too much
for you, forget entirely about developing any software for a global community or
market because any other i18n mechanism will involve at least as many
complexities.
Steady steps spell
success with Google
There are important lessons developers can glean from
the success of Google. It so happens that I am often called upon to offer solemn
advice to my fellow developers. Since I’m human, such sermonizing usually
emphasizes those things I think I do well and that perhaps others do not. What
stands out for me about lessons from Google is that in most of them I know that
I, myself, often fall short.
Managing XML libraries
It's a stretch to say that XML is a leap forward in managing
text on par with say moveable type, but the adoption of a lingua franca for
markup is a significant milestone. All it needs to fulfill the promise of making
the Web the next leap in the evolution of libraries is an indexing system as
effective for XML as the Roman catalogs were for parchment scrolls and codices
(precursors to modern-day books).
Keep your XML clean
I work as a consultant specializing in the intersection between XML and other application development technologies. In that work I have been disappointed overall with the quality of design of XML documents in the enterprise.
Objects. Encapsulation. XML?
The partnership between XML and OO will be successful if XML finally gets OO
programmers to accept declarative approaches to programming.
What’s in the name “Web service”?
It looks good on resumes, is whispered in conspiratorial tones to new college
graduates and, most importantly, opens up departmental budgets.
Perspective on XML: What is this ‘agility’?
The pitch is that software development can be more like a maneuverable motorcycle
than a lumbering locomotive which proceed only along fixed track.
A custom-fit career in app development
Imagine how the use of basic skills could raise your value in whatever post
you occupy, to the extent that you needn’t be looking for a job on anyone else’s
terms in the first place.
Is XQuery an omni-tool?
A look at a complex tool that may have its place among, but may not replace,
other tools in the developers' arsenal.
XML's demi-decade
A look at the short and colorful history of a precocious language, and what
the next five years might bring.
Serenity through markup
'Just as the swami tells the acolyte that to bend the spoon with his mind he
must let go of the idea of a physical spoon, the markup state of mind suggests
a calmer approach: One achieves interoperability by not striving too consciously
for it.'
The many heads of XML modeling
Exploring the little-known link between XML and Greek mythology.
The worry about program wizards
Pay attention to the man behind the curtain- but don't rely on him to get all
of the programming done.
XML class warfare
Proletariat vs. the bourgoiesie? No, something much more serious: The fight
for XML's future.
WSDL and the Wild, Wild West
There's a new sheriff in town. But will a new format be enough to clean up the
XML frontier?
The changing face of repositories
How a semi-abandoned practice may be getting a second chance in the development
world.