XML: Solving Business Problems

by George Reese

Important technologies inspire innovation, motivating technologists and entrepreneurs to both create new roles for the technology and use it to solve old problems. The Internet is the most glamorous example of such a technology. Among the innovations inspired by the Internet are network-centric technologies such as Java and XML; however, these innovations are wrapped in a veil of hype. The benefit of the hype is that it draws people in, bringing about creative work with the technology. The downside is that it leads to misguided attempts at applying the technology to the wrong problems. For an observer, sorting out the valid applications of a hyped technology from the misapplications can be hard work.