Java and XML

[Savithri Devaraj]

Hi,
What APIs does Java have to use XML in java applications?
We have a Java project which needs some redesign for 2 sets of forms. A lot of processing in the sets are similar with different database entities manipulated. Is this a good opportunity to use XML? We are using Java 1.2 with SilverStream Application Server and Oracle for our database.
Specifically, what is the interface between java and XML?
Thanks for your help,
Savithri

[Ajith Kallambella]

The interface between Java and XML would be the parsers. These parsers allows you to decipher the XML data using a java program. Higherlevel frameworks like JAXP( http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/earlyAccess/xml/docs/api/index.html ) and JDOM( www.jdom.org ) help you use the parsers with ease and flexibility.
You could start from using XML as the de-facto standard for data representation. You will also benefit from somekind of a lightweight frameworks that translate result sets to XML format and vice-versa.
Good luck,
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Ajith Kallambella M.
Sun Certified Programmer for the Java�2 Platform.