XML FAQ: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 14:56, 15 October 2013

(If you don't find the answer to your question here, just post the question. There might be someone out there to provide the answer.)

XML in general

Where do I find general information about XML?

http://www.w3schools.com/xml/default.asp - A host of information and hands-on examples
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XML - A good starting point

Moodle XML

Is there only one kind of Moodle XML?

No, there are (at least) two different kinds of Moodle XML:

one for importing/exporting glossaries
and one for questions (quizzes), the latter being the one usually referred to as "Moodle XML".

Then there is XML in the SCORM/IMS packages that Moodle can import and must be able to handle. These packages are educational content that has been marked up in a special way to be able to be used in compatible Learning Management Systems.

The course backup and restore process also generates an XML file (inside the zip file) that contains all the information about the course.

Where do I find documentation about Moodle XML?

The official documentation: Moodle XML
A more thorough documentation: Moodle XML format by Quedoc

Problems when transferring XML format into Moodle

Frank Ralf/Moodle XML1 (work in progress)

Tools

Are there tools for converting to and from Moodle XML?

Moodle XML Converter - allows to create XML from text files. Also can converse Moodle XML into text file. Supports quiz and glossary.
Glossary to XML Converter

A simple HTML file which converts TSV data to XML using JavaScript

Microsoft Office macros: http://finemetronome.com/moodle/
OpenOffice XML filters (TBA see Frank Ralf/Moodle XML1 for some pointers)

How can I view and edit XML files?

XML is just text so you can view and edit it with any text editor. However, this isn't very easy for anything more than a trivial file. There are a number of dedicated XML editors available for many platforms. If you only need to view the XML, most browsers are able to render XML files. Some even let you view the source text and do some basic editing.

@@ Line 12: / Line 12: @@
 ===Is there only one kind of Moodle XML?===
-No, there are (at least) two different kinds of Moodle XML, one for importing/exporting ''glossaries'' and one for ''questions'' (quizzes), the latter being the one usually referred to as "Moodle XML".
+No, there are (at least) two different kinds of Moodle XML:
+# one for importing/exporting ''glossaries''
+# and one for ''questions'' (quizzes), the latter being the one usually referred to as "Moodle XML".
 Then there is XML in the SCORM/IMS packages that Moodle can import and must be able to handle. These packages are educational content that has been marked up in a special way to be able to be used in compatible Learning Management Systems.

Documentation