Definition:
XML, which stands for“Extensible Markup Language“, is a markup language that defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a human-readable and machine-readable format. It is defined by the W3C XML 1.0 specification and several other related specifications, which are open and free standards. The design goals of XML emphasize simplicity, generality and ease of use on the Internet.
Although originally designed for documents, XML is widely used to represent arbitrary data structures, such as those used in web services. Several schema systems exist for defining XML-based languages, and many application programming interfaces(APIs) have been developed to facilitate the handling of XML data.
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XML Applications
Since 2009, hundreds of document formats have been developed using XML syntax, including RSS, Atom, SOAP and XHTML. XML-based formats have become the default standard for many office tools, such as Microsoft Office (Office Open XML), OpenOffice.org and LibreOffice (OpenDocument), and Apple’s iWork.
XML is also used as the base language for communication protocols, such as XMPP. Applications for the Microsoft .NET Framework use XML files for configuration, and Apple has implemented an XML-based logging system.
Data exchange and XML
XML has become a common standard for exchanging data over the Internet. IETF RFC 7303 establishes the rules for constructing Internet media types for sending XML. It also defines the media types application/xml and text/xml, which indicate that the data is in XML format, without specifying its semantics. However, the use of text/xml has been criticized due to potential encoding problems and it is suggested that it be considered obsolete. RFC 7303 also recommends that XML-based languages end in +xml, such as image/svg+xml for SVG.
Recommendations for the use of XML
RFC 3470, also known as IETF BCP 70, provides guidelines for the use of XML in a network context. This document covers many aspects of the design and deployment of an XML-based language, ensuring that it is used efficiently and effectively in different applications and network environments.
Frequently asked questions about XML
What is XML?
XML is a markup language used to structure, transport and store data in a way that is readable by machines and people. It allows custom tags to be defined and information to be organized hierarchically, so it is used in integrations, feeds, sitemaps and system configuration.
What is XML used for in SEO and digital marketing?
It is used to exchange data between platforms and to provide search engines with structured information. In SEO it is especially common in XML sitemaps, which help communicate which URLs exist, when they have been updated and how a search engine should discover them.
What is the difference between XML and HTML?
HTML is designed to display content on a web page, while XML is designed to structure data. An HTML document indicates how information is presented to the user; an XML document describes data so that other systems can read, process or exchange it.
What errors are common when working with XML?
The most common errors are badly closed tags, unescaped characters, inconsistent structure or data that does not respect the format expected by the tool that consumes it. In SEO, an XML sitemap with incorrect URLs, redirects or status errors can make crawling more difficult.