Leitchn has asked for the wisdom of the Perl Monks concerning the following question:

Further to my previous question about Perl and XML, here's another:

Which language would you use for XML processing, and why?

Thanks again.

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Perl & XML Take 2
by Fastolfe (Vicar) on Nov 06, 2000 at 22:16 UTC
    Define "XML processing". Each language has its own strengths and weaknesses. If you're working on an application that happens to use XML, I would put XML processing towards the bottom of the list of criteria I would use to select an appropriate language.

    Personally, I am strongest in Perl, so I have a tendency of preferring it for most of my tasks. Its XML abilities have little to do with that decision.

    In my opinion, Perl's XML abilities are just as strong as any other language's. For that reason, I would look at other aspects of the desired application to determine the best language for the task. Perl is good at text manipulation, so if we're talking about converting XML to/from other flexible, textual languages, I'd say that's a perfect application for Perl.

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RE: Perl & XML Take 2
by mirod (Canon) on Nov 06, 2000 at 22:32 UTC

    Well, I love Perl, and it happens that there is a whole bunch of modules on CPAN specially dedicated to XML processing, from getting XML out of data base to writing XML to of course parsing and transforming XML.

    So I guess, not too surprisingly for a Perl Monk, I would use Perl... well, I actually do use it every day

    But of course it depends of what kind of processing you have in mind, XSLT might be appropriate for some simple tasks, pure C can probably be faster if you know what you are doing and I am sure a case could be made that even Java can be used... your pick.

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Re: Perl & XML Take 2
by clemburg (Curate) on Nov 07, 2000 at 03:49 UTC

    Any language that has a decent library doing the job I need to be done. It all depends very much on the task to be done. You might find some interesting advice here.

    Christian Lemburg
    Brainbench MVP for Perl
    http://www.brainbench.com

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(jeffa) Re: Perl & XML Take 2
by jeffa (Bishop) on Nov 06, 2000 at 22:12 UTC
    Perl, because XML is text and Perl loves to parse text. Plus all the OOP support and modules from CPAN.
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RE: Perl & XML Take 2
by little (Curate) on Nov 07, 2000 at 22:26 UTC
    Well, just have to point to: Template::Plugin::Java, just in case you insist on using java occasionally, but want perl to assist you building it. :-)
    Yeah, I love Perl and I love CPAN !


    Have a nice day
    All decision is left to your taste
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