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XML Core Services and Document Object Model

A version of this page is also available for

Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3

4/8/2010

XML Core Services and Document Object Model (DOM) functionality provide a set of application programming interfaces (APIs) that allow you to access and manipulate an XML document. This functionality is based on the Microsoft XML Parser (MSXML) version 3.0 SP1.

The Document Object Model (DOM) presents an easily processed standardized interpretation of an XML document to applications and scripts. In other words, the DOM object model exposes the contents of an XML document.

The DOM implementation in the Microsoft XML Parser (MSXML) allows you to load or create a document, gather errors, if there are any, access and manipulate the information and structures contained within the document, and save the document back out to an XML file, if necessary.

The Microsoft XML Parser (MSXML) reads an XML document and parses its contents into a set of abstract information containers called nodes. These nodes represent the structure and content of the document, and allow applications to read and manipulate the information in the document without explicitly understanding XML syntax. After a document is parsed, its nodes can be explored in any direction. They are not limited to straight-through text file processing.

The DOM defines a standard set of commands that parsers should expose so you can access HTML and XML document content from your programs. An XML parser that supports the DOM will take the data in an XML document and expose it by using a set of objects that you can program against.

In This Section

  • XML DOM Application Development
    Provides high-level information about the DOM and how it is structured so that you can create scripts that can read and write to an XML DOM document.
  • XML DOM Security
    Provides security information about XML DOM and best practices for implementation.
  • XML DOM Reference
    Provides detailed information about the XML DOM programming elements.
  • XML HTTP
    Provides reference information about XML HTTP which enables you to create applications that can transfer data over the Web.
  • XML Query Language (XQL)
    Describes XML Query Language (XQL). This is similar to Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) patterns and uses Extensible Markup Language (XML) as a data model.
  • XML SAX
    Describes the Simple API for XML (SAX), which is a programmatic alternative to DOM-based processing.
  • XML Minimal Parser
    Provides information about the Windows Mobile XML Minimal Parser, which is a limited version of the XML parser on the desktop.