Promises, Promises
Despite the enormous enthusiasm XML has aroused in fields from literate programming to database management to business interchange, it has so far mostly missed its original target, the World Wide Web. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) designed XML for the Web, but its early promise has been held up by the lack of a few key standards - notably XLink, its hypertext link mechanism - and limited browser implementation. XML has barely moved out of the starting gate as a medium for Web development.

Fortunately, new standards and new browers are finally making it possible for Web developers to take XML seriously. While there are still obstacles, XML is finally reaching the point where it can compete with and eventually overtake HTML, providing Web developers with tools for reaching a much broader audience in more compelling ways. >>

1 A Child's Garden of XML
2 Communicating with People and Computers
3 Sophisticated Linking
4 Manageable Information
5 The XHTML Bridge
6 Browsable XML