The good news is that XML is not as complicated to master as other tools. UML (Unified Modeling Language), for instance, is a more structured and complex technology that relies on a deeper knowledge of programming techniques than does XML. In contrast, XML relies on formatting techniques, making it more approachable. Anyone who knows HTML should be able to move seamlessly to XML, which adds detail to data without adding much complexity. It requires anywhere from three to six months of training on average (less for some hotshot programmers).

Much of the XML training for Web programmers is computer-based, so savvy programmers can train themselves quickly. It takes about three months with good training to become productive in XML and additional time to become versed in the trickier tasks like building links to UML.

With XML, content gets described with XML markers attached to the content -- instead of just presented, as it is with HTML. And because the content (data) is "tagged" in a standard way (see "Playing Tag: How XML Labels Data," at left), it can be moved through any channel, not just the Web. Take the voice arena, the next big wave for XML: XML is being used to convey information from a Web site to a cell phone, or to a call system supported by an IVR (interactive voice response) system.

Although XML's main use until recently had been in the Web realm, its role has expanded into specific industries' e-business architectures, such as human resources, insurance and finance industries, which have created standards organizations for using XML in their e-businesses. The goal is to make the same information available to users and customers through a variety of channels, from the Web to the call center, for instance.

Meta Group predicts that XML-based messages for integrating applications within and across business boundaries will become a mainstream practice by 2002 and that within the next two years XML will be the dominant integration protocol as well as a full-fledged standard for B2B Internet interaction. So to prepare for the XML onslaught expected by 2004, application developers need to be fluent in XML -- soon.

'X' Marks the Spot

Companies need to put considerable effort into how they build their infrastructures so they can leverage XML technology. And though it's relatively simple for programmers to learn XML basics, it's not so easy to define the tags. Having clear XML definitions, or markers, will help companies leverage the technology more rapidly.

XML-based technologies can provide significant benefits to users and yield a competitive advantage to vendors when XML is integrated into software products and used alongside XML tools. BizTalk, e-speak and Jini are among the many tools that can be used to develop XML applications.

For a programmer, it's easier to demonstrate your value to the company when you have created an application that will be used across not merely one but multiple channels. One major retailer with a dominant Web presence did just that, extending Web information about its products to a call center using XML tags, such as "XML-Data" or "XML-Parser," for instance. It also extended an employee purchase program for its products through a kiosk that links to both its product catalog and the call-center systems -- all without having to write a completely new user interface. The retailer had sent its project leader for additional training to learn XML.

Still, it's not always simple to deploy XML. Sometimes, building XML support into these types of applications just means adding a generic XML parser or processor and developing a new data dictionary. But other times it can be more complicated, requiring support for XML internal data representations and using sophisticated XML transformation tools.

Developing internal expertise in XML and the array of XML-based formats, protocols and standards will be essential for most companies, even though most will be using XML software components purchased from vendors in addition to rolling their own XML coding. They still will need a core technical team thoroughly versed in XML to intelligently purchase XML tools.

The combination of a company's own XML-fluent design and development group and the judicious use of XML components will help that company deliver its own product offerings electronically and enhance how content about its products is used. One major insurance company is using XML in its policy product, which traditionally had been a paper document created from a boilerplate. A policy now can be created just once electronically. It is then sent from a policy administrator to a call center, and then through an extranet to a doctor or an auto-inspection center, and out to would-be customers via the Internet -- all without having to recode the file to run on these different platforms.

Although it is possible to "hand-code" XML documents, it's better to run XML tools that convert business data into XML formats and XML formats into business data, rather than rely on programmers to directly manipulate XML tags. It's important to evaluate application and integration servers and related tools, at least in part, on how well they provide such facilities. They should also be evaluated on their support of standard (and emerging standard) XML-based formats and protocols. Web and application developers should avoid products that promise XML support but do so using vendor-specific XML-based formats and protocols. There's no reason to accept a lock-in to a single vendor's XML product.

Meanwhile, XML's role continues to broaden. IBM, Microsoft and Oracle have plans to further enhance and integrate XML support into their database products, according to Meta Group projections, from this year through 2003. And XML also is being deployed to separate Web-page content from its presentation, such as through XSL (Extensible Stylesheet Language) and XSLT (XSL Transformations) in conjunction with XHTML (Extensible HTML). This is only the beginning of the XML age, so companies need to get their developers up to speed in the technology with the proper training, or look elsewhere for some "X-pertise."