XMLi

XMLi is a fictional open-standard framework designed to illustrate XML-based data processing and integration tasks. It is not a formal specification and has no official conformance tests; rather, it is used in educational materials and tutorials to demonstrate how an end-to-end XML pipeline might operate.

Core concepts include a simplified XML data model, schema-driven validation, a query language akin to XPath, and a transformation mechanism similar to XSLT. XMLi envisions a streaming-capable engine to handle large documents efficiently, as well as a binding layer for common programming languages.

The architecture centers on a core engine that coordinates parsing, validation, querying, and serialization, with pluggable backends for parsers and serializers. An extension registry allows users to add custom processors, such as validators or format converters, without altering the core.

Interoperability with established XML technologies is emphasized. XMLi workflows typically combine XML Schema for validation, XPath-like queries for data extraction, and XSLT-like transformations for output formats such as JSON or CSV.

Common use cases in demonstrations include processing incoming XML data streams, extracting specific fields, transforming documents for downstream systems, and teaching pipeline design. Because XMLi is not a formal standard, concrete implementations vary and may adopt different syntax or tooling.

In literature and tutorials, XMLi serves as a pedagogical model rather than a production-ready technology, highlighting the challenges and trade-offs of XML processing. See also XML, XML Schema, XPath, XSLT, JSON.