XSLT Questions and Answers.: I’ve been thrust back into the world of XSLT while I tinker with Microsoft Access as a client-based CMS. I had forgotten how frustrating XSLT can be. Effects that are so easy in any number of programming languages require reams of markup to reproduce in XSL.
This, however, is a great resource. It seems to have been compiled from a mailing list, and it’s full of “How do I do this…” questions and their answers. How do I know it’s a good reference? Because it’s full of the exact questions I’m asking myself as I write XSL templates.
More proof that a great resource doesn’t have to have great design, programming, or architecture. Sometimes 12 pt. Times New Roman and no sidebars is just what you need.
How about Microsoft Access as a client-side content management tool? After playing around with Radio UserLand and CityDesk, I'm finding more and more utility in a client-side apps. They're responsive, they don't need to be connected (great for laptops or dial-up), and you can do a lot more…
I've lately taken a new view towards XSLT. I used to look at it as a page parser that was going to run through my XML and generate output. Now I see it more akin to CSS, only for XML docs. So, you pick an element with template-match and XPATH, then apply your style to that portion. It seems to be an easier approach.
I've started writing more and more extension functions -- using VBScript to "function out" to a traditional programming language to do more advanced stuff.
I use XSL for the broad strokes -- dump this big chunk of text here -- and VBScript for anything more intricate.
Yes, I know this breaks parser compatibility, but in this instance it doesn't matter -- I'm programming with VBA in Access, so MSXML is the only parser that's ever going to be used for the app.
