xml-based course websites michael wollowski computer science and software engineering department ...
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XML-Based Course Websites Michael Wollowski Computer Science and Software Engineering Department Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Introduction: Background. My interest is in search engines XML promises the development of powerful search engines Placed CSSE course descriptions into XML - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
XML-Based Course WebsitesMichael Wollowski
Computer Science and Software Engineering Department
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Introduction: BackgroundMy interest is in search enginesXML promises the development of powerful search enginesPlaced CSSE course descriptions into XMLWrote a search engine for themRealized that editors are easyHave to rely on other people to provide contents
Introduction: Benefits of XMLSeparation of form and contentsCommon information can be placed into separate filesWebpages of the same kind are rendered in the same way
Introduction: XML in comparison
Benefits of courseware products:Ease of useIntegration with other systems
Drawbacks of courseware products:
Formatting and functionality are as provided
Introduction: XML in comparison
Benefits of direct editing:Complete control over appearance and contents
Drawbacks of direct editing:A lot of work formatting contents
Introduction: XML in comparison
XML promises to share some of the benefits of both:
Complete control over appearance and contentsEase of contents creation and maintenance
Additional benefit of XML:Powerful search engines
XML: The TechnologyThree technologies in one:
DTDXML documentXSL stylesheet
XML: XML DocumentsXML documents contain elementsAn element consists of an opening and closing tagElements are nestedElement names describe contentsElements are not used to format documents
XML: XML DocumentsExample:
<course_description> <id>CSSE 100</id> <title>Introduction to Programming and Problem Solving
</title></course_description>
XML: XML DocumentsDesign your own element structure by defining a DTDUse someone else’s DTD
XML: DTDsA DTD defines a class of documentsA DTD specifies:
Elements of the document Attributes of elements Order and nesting of elements Whether elements are necessary
XML: XSL StylesheetsUsed to transform an XML document into an HTML documentXML documents specify which XSL stylesheet is to be used.Web-browser receives XML document and then requests XSL stylesheet
XML: XSL Stylesheets
XML: XSL StylesheetsUniform appearance of classes of documents: use same stylesheetStylesheet has to be edited just onceSeparation of form and contentsContent providers focus on providing contents
XML: XSL StylesheetsThey are complexDetermine order of presentationLeave out informationLimited amount of processing, e.g. fill in missing information
XML: XSL StylesheetsCombine information from several documents Minimize repetition of information, by placing common information into separate documentsEnsures consistency of informationReduces amount of nuisance editing
EditingSeparation of form and contents greatly aids in editingContents providers do not have to be concerned about formattingThree ways to edit an XML document:
Edit a template (good)Copy and edit another document (better)Use a forms-based editor (best)
Forms-Based EditorA web-page with text-fields for XML elementsCustomized to DTDStraight-forward to providePossible to auto-generate
Forms-Based Editor
Pinpoint SearchingSpecial-purpose search engine tailored to DTDInformation processing engine
Pinpoint Searching
Experience with the TechnologyCourse description editor is easyTested syllabus editor on 20 studentsEditor works well for structured XML documentsHTML can be added and is properly renderedPreview of documents is being added
Experience with the TechnologyTested course descriptions search engine on 30 studentsOne side of classroom used our XML search engine, other side used Google, restricted to RHITAsked a variety of questions, some favored ours, some favored Google, and some were neutral
Experience with the Technology“Which courses can I take if I passed CSSE230?” favored XML search“What are the required CS courses for a CS major?” favored Google“What programming languages are used in the CS curriculum?” favored neitherXML searchers turned in their results before Google searchers
Future WorkGeneral purpose search engineDTDs for course materials