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2. Users of SGML (including browsers of HTML)

What do I have to do to use XML?
Why should I use XML instead of HTML?
Where can I get an XML browser?
Do I have to switch from SGML or HTML to XML?

What do I have to do to use XML?

For the average user of the Web, nothing except use a browser which works with XML (see the question about browsers). Remember XML is still being implemented, so some features are still either undefined or have yet to be written.
You can use XML browsers to look at some of the emerging XML material, such as Jon Bosak's Shakespeare plays and the molecular experiments of the Chemical Markup Language (CML). There are some more example sources listed at http://www.oasis-open.org/cover/xml.html#examples.
If you want to start preparations for creating your own XML, see the questions in the Authors' Sectionand the Developers' Section.

Why should I use XML instead of HTML?

Where can I get an XML browser?

Remember the XML specification is still new, so a lot of what you see now is experimental. As with HTML, there won't be just one browser, but many. However, because the potential number of different XML applications is not limited, no single browser can be expected to handle 100% of everything.
Some of the generic parts of XML (eg parsing, tree management, searching, formatting, etc) are being combined into general-purpose browser libraries or toolkits to make it easier for developers to take a consistent line when writing XML applications. Such applications can then be customized by adding semantics for specific markets, or using languages like Java to develop plugins for generic browsers and have the specialist modules delivered transparently over the Web.
See also the notes on software for authors and developers, and the more detailed list on the XML pages in the SGML Web site at http://www.oasis-open.org/cover/xml.html.

Do I have to switch from SGML or HTML to XML?

No, existing SGML and HTML applications software will continue to work with existing files. But as with any enhanced facility, if you want to view or download and use XML files, you will need to add XML-aware software as it becomes available.

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