These material are compiled for helping junior / senior software engineers
and others.
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Describe the differences between XML and HTML.
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It's amazing how many developers claim to be proficient programming
with XML, yet do not understand the basic differences between XML and
HTML. Anyone with a fundamental grasp of XML should be able describe
some of the main differences outlined in the table below.
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Differences Between XML and HTML
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XML
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HTML
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User definable tags
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Defined set of tags designed for web display
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Content driven
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Format driven
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End tags required for well formed documents
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End tags not required
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Quotes required around attributes values
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Quotes not required
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Slash required in empty tags
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Slash not required
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Describe the role that XSL can play when dynamically generating
HTML pages from a relational database.
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Even if candidates have never participated in a project involving
this type of architecture, they should recognize it as one of the
common uses of XML. Querying a database and then formatting the
result set so that it can be validated as an XML document allows
developers to translate the data into an HTML table using XSLT rules.
Consequently, the format of the resulting HTML table can be modified
without changing the database query or application code since the
document rendering logic is isolated to the XSLT rules.
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Give a few examples of types of applications that can benefit
from using XML.
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There are literally thousands of applications that can benefit from
XML technologies. The ball of this question is not to have the
candidate rattle off a laundry list of projects that they have worked
on, but, rather, to allow the candidate to explain the rationale for
choosing XML by citing a few real world examples. For instance, one
appropriate answer is that XML allows content management systems to
store documents independently of their format, which thereby reduces
data redundancy. Another answer relates to B2B exchanges or supply
chain management systems. In these instances, XML provides a
mechanism for multiple companies to exchange data according to an
agreed upon set of rules. A third common response involves wireless
applications that require WML to render data on hand held
devices.
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What is DOM and how does it relate to XML?
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The Document Object Model (DOM) is an interface specification
maintained by the W3C DOM Workgroup that defines an application
independent mechanism to access, parse, or update XML data. In simple
terms it is a hierarchical model that allows developers to manipulate
XML documents easily Any developer that has worked extensively with
XML should be able to discuss the concept and use of DOM objects
freely. Additionally, it is not unreasonable to expect advanced
candidates to thoroughly understand its internal workings and be able
to explain how DOM differs from an event-based interface like
SAX.
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What is SOAP and how does it relate to XML?
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The Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) uses XML to define a
protocol for the exchange of information in distributed computing
environments. SOAP consists of three components: an envelope, a set
of encoding rules, and a convention for representing remote procedure
calls. Unless experience with SOAP is a direct requirement for the
open position, knowing the specifics of the protocol, or how it can
be used in conjunction with HTTP, is not as important as identifying
it as a natural application of XML.
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Can you walk us through the steps necessary to parse XML
documents?
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Superficially, this is a fairly basic question. However, the ball is
not to determine whether candidates understand the concept of a
parser but rather have them walk through the process of parsing XML
documents step-by-step. Determining whether a non-validating or
validating parser is needed, choosing the appropriate parser, and
handling errors are all important aspects to this process that should
be included in the candidate's response.
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Give some examples of XML DTDs or schemas that you have worked
with.
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Although XML does not require data to be validated against a DTD,
many of the benefits of using the technology are derived from being
able to validate XML documents against business or technical
architecture rules. Polling for the list of DTDs that developers have
worked with provides insight to their general exposure to the
technology. The ideal candidate will have knowledge of several of the
commonly used DTDs such as FpML, DocBook, HRML, and RDF, as well as
experience designing a custom DTD for a particular project where no
standard existed.
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Using XSLT, how would you extract a specific attribute from an
element in an XML document?
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Successful candidates should recognize this as one of the most basic
applications of XSLT. If they are not able to construct a reply
similar to the example below, they should at least be able to
identify the components necessary for this operation: xsl:template to
match the appropriate XML element, xsl:value-of to
select the attribute value, and the optional
xsl:apply-templates to continue processing the document.
Extract Attributes from XML Data
Example 1.
<xsl:template match="element-name">
Attribute Value:
<xsl:value-of select="@attribute"/>
<xsl:apply-templates/>
</xsl:template>
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When constructing an XML DTD, how do you create an external
entity reference in an attribute value?
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Every interview session should have at least one trick question.
Although possible when using SGML, XML DTDs don't support defining
external entity references in attribute values. It's more important
for the candidate to respond to this question in a logical way than
than the candidate know the somewhat obscure answer.
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How would you build a search engine for large volumes of XML
data?
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The way candidates answer this question may provide insight into
their view of XML data. For those who view XML primarily as a way to
denote structure for text files, a common answer is to build a
full-text search and handle the data similarly to the way Internet
portals handle HTML pages. Others consider XML as a standard way of
transferring structured data between disparate systems. These
candidates often describe some scheme of importing XML into a
relational or object database and relying on the database's engine
for searching. Lastly, candidates that have worked with vendors
specializing in this area often say that the best way the handle this
situation is to use a third party software package optimized for XML
data.