Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Very basic, not for techies
An excellent introduction and overview of XML for non-technical people, primarily managers and others chiefly concerned with ROI and the business implications of XML. All but the most novice developers, however, will find this video way too basic. Too many talking heads, and a mediocre use of visual examples. In fact, there's little here that couldn't have been covered as easily in an audiotape or book. A "sequel" of this video for developers already familiar with XML would be most welcome.
Rating:  - Justifies the value of XML to project managers
In teaching classes on XML, I encounter the occasional manager who simply wants to know if XML justifies the hype and whether they should be moving towards using it in their work. I just completed an XML tutorial at a conference hosted by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers where a manager was trying to make a major decision concerning the use of XML. His department has an enormous amount of electronic documentation and his main interest was in how to justify and then execute converting this data into XML. If I had known about this video at that time, I would have simply told him to view it. Designed to introduce the concepts of XML rather than the details, it is perfect for anyone who wants to know what it does at the level of the forest.
The explanations of what markup languages are and how they can be used are simply the best that I have encountered, which covers about ten books. In retrospect, I wish I had seen it before I wrote my book, "Sams Teach Yourself XML in 24 Hours." The examples of how XML can be used are so good that simply viewing them would have given me additional perspectives that would have made the approach of some of my examples more direct and convincing.
From now on, I will start my courses with a recommendation to view this video, and will recommend that the academic libraries where I teach purchase a copy for their holdings. It is direct, to the point and presents knowledge of value to the beginner and experienced practitioner. Published in Mathematics and Computer Education, reprinted with permission.
Rating: - Video Quality and Editing on Par with PBS/Discovery Channel
After being jaded by seeing way too many low-budget, just slightly better than public-access-cable-tv-channel-type instructional videos, this just blew me away! Quick and interesting editing with decent background music and sound make XML more interesting than possibly anything in the computer universe. Contains just enough tech information to keep you interested without distracting from the business value and impact that XML can and is having in the world of information management. I'd love to see a followup covering XSLT/Canonical Forms, etc. Well worth the time and money involved to get and view a copy.
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