XML-Based Course WebsitesMichael Wollowski

Computer Science and Software Engineering Department

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Introduction: BackgroundMy interest is in search enginesXML promises the development of powerful search enginesPlaced CSSE course descriptions into XMLWrote a search engine for themRealized that editors are easyHave to rely on other people to provide contents

Introduction: Benefits of XMLSeparation of form and contentsCommon information can be placed into separate filesWebpages of the same kind are rendered in the same way

Introduction: XML in comparison

Benefits of courseware products:Ease of useIntegration with other systems

Drawbacks of courseware products:

Formatting and functionality are as provided

Introduction: XML in comparison

Benefits of direct editing:Complete control over appearance and contents

Drawbacks of direct editing:A lot of work formatting contents

Introduction: XML in comparison

XML promises to share some of the benefits of both:

Complete control over appearance and contentsEase of contents creation and maintenance

Additional benefit of XML:Powerful search engines

XML: The TechnologyThree technologies in one:

DTDXML documentXSL stylesheet

XML: XML DocumentsXML documents contain elementsAn element consists of an opening and closing tagElements are nestedElement names describe contentsElements are not used to format documents

XML: XML DocumentsExample:

<course_description> <id>CSSE 100</id> <title>Introduction to Programming and Problem Solving

</title></course_description>

XML: XML DocumentsDesign your own element structure by defining a DTDUse someone else’s DTD

XML: DTDsA DTD defines a class of documentsA DTD specifies:

Elements of the document Attributes of elements Order and nesting of elements Whether elements are necessary

XML: XSL StylesheetsUsed to transform an XML document into an HTML documentXML documents specify which XSL stylesheet is to be used.Web-browser receives XML document and then requests XSL stylesheet

XML: XSL Stylesheets

XML: XSL StylesheetsUniform appearance of classes of documents: use same stylesheetStylesheet has to be edited just onceSeparation of form and contentsContent providers focus on providing contents

XML: XSL StylesheetsThey are complexDetermine order of presentationLeave out informationLimited amount of processing, e.g. fill in missing information

XML: XSL StylesheetsCombine information from several documents Minimize repetition of information, by placing common information into separate documentsEnsures consistency of informationReduces amount of nuisance editing

EditingSeparation of form and contents greatly aids in editingContents providers do not have to be concerned about formattingThree ways to edit an XML document:

Edit a template (good)Copy and edit another document (better)Use a forms-based editor (best)

Forms-Based EditorA web-page with text-fields for XML elementsCustomized to DTDStraight-forward to providePossible to auto-generate

Forms-Based Editor

Pinpoint SearchingSpecial-purpose search engine tailored to DTDInformation processing engine

Pinpoint Searching

Experience with the TechnologyCourse description editor is easyTested syllabus editor on 20 studentsEditor works well for structured XML documentsHTML can be added and is properly renderedPreview of documents is being added

Experience with the TechnologyTested course descriptions search engine on 30 studentsOne side of classroom used our XML search engine, other side used Google, restricted to RHITAsked a variety of questions, some favored ours, some favored Google, and some were neutral

Experience with the Technology“Which courses can I take if I passed CSSE230?” favored XML search“What are the required CS courses for a CS major?” favored Google“What programming languages are used in the CS curriculum?” favored neitherXML searchers turned in their results before Google searchers

Future WorkGeneral purpose search engineDTDs for course materials