XML.com: XML and CSS

XML.com: XML and CSS

XML and CSS
Stuart Culshaw, Michael Leventhal, and Murray Maloney
Abstract
The simplicity of document creation was a key element in the astonishingly rapid development of the Web. This article describes XML and CSS: the "one-two" punch that will not only bring back that level of simplicity, but also enable the construction of complex applications which are either difficult or impossible using HTML. In this article we outline the steps for using an CSS style sheet in an XML document; we discuss the limitations of CSS in complex applications; and we present a real life example.

HTML provides limited possibilities for the explicit formatting and positioning of text. The mechanisms that are provided--such as the FONT element or the ALIGN attribute--force the page designer to embed presentation-specific information within the document; a fact that makes it difficult to prepare documents for a variety of screen sizes, presentation modalities, and types of audiences. Because these limited features are not sufficient to achieve the formatting results desired by many Web designers, they commonly resort to using tables and various HTML coding "tricks." This presents many negative consequences, particularly because it is so difficult to maintain information content in HTML documents; the content is inextricably interwined with the format-related encoding. More sophisticated formatting capabilities have long been needed to support the many document types, ranging from marketing froufrou to legal documents to scientific journals.