Is XML really a wonder oil for system interfacing, as business managers and IT experts often argue? The eXtensible Markup Language (XML) is a syntax standard for electronic messages and data structures, using: content Indeed, this ‘tagging’ of data fields is a very strong feature of XML. Complex data structures can be modeled and validated by message definitions (DTDs and XSD style sheets). 
Also, messages can be converted into other messages by the XSLT mapping language. Finally, XML messages can easily be read and changed by IT people using an XML editor. So, the good thing of XML is that is it an accepted syntax standard with available facilities and tools. However, XML in itself is not a standard format for business transactions. And that is what we need for system interfacing. Luckily, thousands of experts have already defined standard formats in the EDIFACT world of the United Nations. Although the XML syntax is better than the traditional EDIFACT syntax, EDIFACT still provides us with rich, useful and proven message formats. So, we better pick the best of both worlds: the syntax from XML and the format from EDIFACT. For this reason, the interface solutions from MP Objects support all features of XML and EDIFACT. That combination is true wonder oil for system interfacing!
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