XSLT is a powerful language for transforming XML documents into
something else. That something else can be an HTML document, another XML
document, a Portable Document Format (PDF) file, a Scalable Vector
Graphics (SVG) file, a Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) file,
Java code, or a number of other things. You write an XSLT stylesheet to
define the rules for transforming an XML document, and the XSLT
processor does the work.As useful as XSLT is, its peculiar
characteristics make it a difficult language in which to get started. In
fact, newcomers are often a little dazed on first contact. Learning
XSLT offers a hands-on introduction to help them get up to speed with
XSLT quickly. The book will help web developers and designers understand
this powerful but often mystifying template-driven and functional-styled
language, getting them over the many differences between XSLT and the
more conventional programming languages.Learning XSLT moves smoothly
from the simple to complex, illustrating all aspects of XSLT 1.0 through
step-by-step examples that you'll practice as you work through the book.
Thorough in its coverage of the language, the book makes few assumptions
about what you may already know. You'll learn about XSLT's
template-based syntax, how XSLT templates work with each other, and gain
an understanding of XSLT variables. Learning XSLT also explains how
the XML Path Language (XPath) is used by XSLT and provides a glimpse of
what the future holds for XSLT 2.0 and XPath 2.0.The ability to
transform one XML vocabulary to another is fundamental to exploiting the
power of XML. Learning XSLT is a carefully paced, example-rich
introduction to XSLT that will have you understanding and using XSLT on
your own in no time.
