How to convert xml format to html

The correct way to convert XML to HTML is to extract XML structure data into a tree structure using a parser. Building an HTML structure based on the extracted data. Avoid inefficient and error-prone string operations.

The gorgeous transformation from XML to HTML: more than just a simple conversion

Many friends have asked me, how to convert XML into HTML gracefully? This is not as simple as a simple string replacement, there are many ways to do it! In this article, I will take you into the deep understanding of this conversion process and some pitfalls you may encounter. After reading it, you can not only easily complete the conversion, but also master some more advanced techniques.

Let’s talk about the conclusion first: directly using string operations to convert XML to HTML is simply a nightmare! Not only is it inefficient, it is also prone to errors, and it makes people bald when maintained. The correct posture is to extract XML structure data with the help of a powerful parser, and then use this data to build an HTML structure.

Basic knowledge laying the foundation: You have to understand XML and HTML first

Don't rush to get started with the code, let's review the basics first. XML, an extensible markup language, is a markup language used to mark electronic files to make them structural, with the emphasis on the structure of data. HTML, a hypertext markup language, is used to create web pages, with the focus on display of web pages. Although both use labels, the goals and application scenarios are completely different. XML pays attention to data, HTML pays attention to display.

Core: parse XML and build HTML

There are many excellent XML parsing libraries on the market, and Python's xml.etree.ElementTree is a good choice. It can help you easily parse XML documents into a tree structure, making it easier for you to extract data. Java also has similar libraries, such as javax.xml.parsers . Which library to choose depends on your programming language.

Let's look at a simple example, assuming your XML file looks like this:

 <code class="xml"><bookstore> <book category="cooking"> <title lang="en">Everyday Italian</title> <author>Giada De Laurentiis</author> <year>2005</year> <price>30.00</price> </book> <book category="children"> <title lang="en">Harry Potter</title> <author>J K. Rowling</author> <year>2005</year> <price>29.99</price> </book> </bookstore></code>

Parses it with Python's xml.etree.ElementTree and generate a simple HTML table:

 <code class="python">import xml.etree.ElementTree as ET tree = ET.parse('books.xml') root = tree.getroot()</code>

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