W3Schools.com

XSL Languages


It started with XSL and ended up with XSLT, XPath, and XSL-FO.


It Started with XSL

XSL stands for EXtensible Stylesheet Language.

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) started to develop XSL because there was a need for an XML-based Stylesheet Language.


CSS = Style Sheets for HTML

HTML uses predefined tags, and the meaning of each tag is well understood.

The <table> tag in HTML defines a table - and a browser knows how to display it.

Adding styles to HTML elements are simple. Telling a browser to display an element in a special font or color, is easy with CSS. 


XSL = Style Sheets for XML

XML does not use predefined tags (we can use any tag-names we like), and therefore the meaning of each tag is not well understood.

A <table> tag could mean an HTML table, a piece of furniture, or something else - and a browser does not know how to display it.

XSL describes how the XML document should be displayed!


XSL - More Than a Style Sheet Language

XSL consists of three parts:

  • XSLT - a language for transforming XML documents
  • XPath - a language for navigating in XML documents
  • XSL-FO - a language for formatting XML documents

This Tutorial is About XSLT

The rest of this tutorial is about XSLT - the language for transforming XML documents.

To learn more about XPath and XSL-FO, visit our XPath Tutorial and our XSL-FO Tutorial.




W3Schools Certification

W3Schools' Online Certification

The perfect solution for professionals who need to balance work, family, and career building.

More than 10 000 certificates already issued!

Get Your Certificate »

The HTML Certificate documents your knowledge of HTML.

The CSS Certificate documents your knowledge of advanced CSS.

The JavaScript Certificate documents your knowledge of JavaScript and HTML DOM.

The jQuery Certificate documents your knowledge of jQuery.

The XML Certificate documents your knowledge of XML, XML DOM and XSLT.

The ASP Certificate documents your knowledge of ASP, SQL, and ADO.

The PHP Certificate documents your knowledge of PHP and SQL (MySQL).

WEB HOSTING
Best Web Hosting
PHP MySQL Hosting
Best Hosting Coupons
UK Reseller Hosting
Cloud Hosting
Top Web Hosting
$7.95/mo SEO Hosting
Premium Website Design
WEB BUILDING
Download XML Editor
FREE Website BUILDER
Free Website Templates Free CSS Templates
Make Your Own Website
W3SCHOOLS EXAMS
Get Certified in:
HTML, CSS, JavaScript, XML, PHP, and ASP
W3SCHOOLS BOOKS
New Books:
HTML, CSS
JavaScript, and Ajax
STATISTICS
Browser Statistics
Browser OS
Browser Display
SHARE THIS PAGE