Introduction

Android, the most commonly used smartphone platform, works on both smartphones and mobile tablets. Motorola XOOM is an Android Tablet. In this article, learn to create and parse an XML document on an Android device. For outputting XML, you can use the standard javax.xml.transform.Transformer class. To parse XML on Android, you can use the DOM and SAX parsers. The org.xmlpull.v1.XmlPullParser pull parser is also an option for parsing XML. The examples in this article use the Android Platform 3.0 for processing XML.

Download the example application used in this article.

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Setting up the environment

To follow along with the examples in this article, install and configure the following software See Resources for links.

1. Install the Eclipse IDE.
2. Install the Android Development Tools (ADT) plug-in for Eclipse, which provides a set of extensions to develop Android applications in Eclipse.
3. Download and install the Android SDK Platform, which provides tools for developing Android applications.
4. Select Window > Android SDK, and AVD Manager, to launch the Android SDK and AVD Manager in Eclipse.
5. Create an Android Virtual Device (AVD), which is an emulator for Android, in the Android SDK and AVD Manager.

   Select Platform 3.0 and API 11 for the AVD.

Creating an XML document

In this section, you create an XML document on Android. The first step is to create an Android project.

1. In the Eclipse IDE, select File > New. In the New dialog, select Android > Android Project. Click Next.
2. In the New Android Project window, as in Figure 1, specify:
   • Project name: CreatingXML
   • Build Target check box: Android Platform 3.0 and API 11
   • Properties:
     • Application name: CreatingXML
     • Package name: android.xml
     • Select Create Activity: Activity class (CreatingXML). An activity represents a user interaction. The class extending the Activity class creates a window for a UI.
     • Minimum SDK Version: 11
   
   
   Figure 1. Create an Android project for platform 3.0
   
   
   
3. Click Next.
4. Click Finish. An Android project that you'll use to create an XML document is created. The Android project consists of these files:
   • An activity class, CreatingXML, which extends the Activity class.
   • The res/layout/main.xml file, which specifies the layout of the Android UI components.
   • The AndroidManifest.xml file, which contains application configuration such as the package name, the main activity to launch when the Android application is started, application components, processes, permissions, and the minimum API level.

Figure 2 shows the directory structure of the Android project CreatingXML.

In the res/layout/main.xml file, specify the layout of the Android UI components. Create a LinearLayout and set android:orientation to vertical. In this example, you'll display the XML document as a text message. Add a TextView element with id xmlresult to display the XML document, as in Listing 1.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
     android:orientation="vertical" android:layout_width="fill_parent"
     android:layout_height="fill_parent">
     <TextView android:id="@+id/xmlresult" android:layout_width="fill_parent"
          android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
</LinearLayout>

In the AndroidManifest.xml file, specify the Activity to launch as CreatingXML. Specify the minimum Android version with the uses-sdk element 11. The activity, the intent-filter, and action are specified with the activity element and subelements. Listing 2 shows the file.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
      package="android.xml"
      android:versionCode="1"
      android:versionName="1.0">
    <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="11" />

    <application android:icon="@drawable/icon" android:label="@string/app_name">
        <activity android:name=".CreatingXML"
                  android:label="@string/app_name">
            <intent-filter>
                <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
                <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
            </intent-filter>
        </activity>

    </application>
</manifest>

Now you'll create an XML document in the activity class CreatingXML, which extends the Activity class. Because the example uses the javax.xml.parsers.DocumentBuilder to create an XML document, import the following.

• javax.xml.parsers.DocumentBuilder class
• javax.xml.parsers.DocumentBuilderFactory class
• org.w3c.dom package
• javax.xml.transform.TransformerFactory class
• javax.xml.transform.Transformer class
• javax.xml.transform.dom.DOMSource class
• javax.xml.transform.stream.StreamResult class

The onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) method is invoked when the activity starts. In the onCreate method, set the UI using the setContentView method and set the layout resource using setContentView(R.layout.main);.

Define the Android widget TextView object in the main.xml file using the findViewById method, with the id xmlresult, as follows: TextView xmlResult = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.xmlresult); .

Create an instance of the DocumentBuilderFactory object using the static method newInstance(). Create a DocumentBuilder object using the newDocumentBuilder() method of the DocumentBuilderFactory class, as in Listing 3.

DocumentBuilderFactory documentBuilderFactory = DocumentBuilderFactory.newInstance();
DocumentBuilder documentBuilder = documentBuilderFactory.newDocumentBuilder();

An XML document is represented by a DOM structure. Create a new Document object, using the newDocument() method of the DocumentBuilder class, with: Document document = documentBuilder.newDocument();.

Create the root element "catalog" of the Document object using the createElement() method: Element rootElement = document.createElement("catalog");.

As in Listing 4, set the publisher and journal attributes on the root element using the setAttribute method.

rootElement.setAttribute("journal", "Oracle Magazine");
rootElement.setAttribute("publisher", "Oracle Publishing");

Append the root element to the Document object using the appendChild() method: document.appendChild(rootElement);.

Create an "article" element using the createElement() method. Append the element to the root element using the appendChild() method, as in Listing 5.

Element articleElement = document.createElement("article");
rootElement.appendChild(articleElement);

As in Listing 6, add an "edition" element to the "article" element.

Element editionElement = document.createElement("edition");
articleElement.appendChild(editionElement);

Add a text node to the "edition" element using the createTextNode() method. Set the text node value "Sept-Oct 2005" as follows: editionElement.appendChild(document.createTextNode("Sept-Oct 2005"));.

Similarly, create and add a "title" element to the "article" element. As in Listing 7, add a text node to the "title" element and set its value to "Creating Search Pages".

Element titleElement = document.createElement("title");
articleElement.appendChild(titleElement);
titleElement.appendChild(document.createTextNode("Creating Search Pages"));

Add an "author" element to the "article" element. Add a text node to the "author" element and set its value to "Steve Muench", as in Listing 8.

authorElement = document.createElement("author");
articleElement.appendChild(authorElement);
authorElement.appendChild(document.createTextNode("Steve Muench"));

Add another "article" element to the root element. You can create an XML document DOM structure the same way you do for a non-Android application. The example will:

• Output the DOM Document object to a ByteArrayOutputStream
• Obtain the XML document as a string from the OutputStream
• Set the string on the TextView widget on Android

Create a TransformerFactory object using the static method newInstance(). As in Listing 9, create a Transformer object using the newTransformer() method of the factory object.

TransformerFactory factory = TransformerFactory.newInstance();			
Transformer transformer = factory.newTransformer();

Create a java.util.Properties object and set the output properties for:

• Indentation (INDENT)
• Output format (METHOD)
• The XML declaration (OMIT_XML_DECLARATION)
• XML version (VERSION)
• Encoding (ENCODING) of the XML document

To transform the DOM structure, you need a Source object and a Result object. Create a DOMSource object from the Document object. For the output, create a ByteArrayOutputStream and a StreamResult object from the ByteArrayOutputStream, as in Listing 10.

DOMSource domSource = new DOMSource(document.getDocumentElement());
OutputStream output = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
StreamResult result = new StreamResult(output);

Transform the Document object using the transform() method of the Transformer object, as follows: transformer.transform(domSource, result);.

Obtain the String object from the ByteArrayOutputStream object and set the String on the TextView widget xmlResult.

String xmlString = output.toString();
xmlResult.setText(xmlString);

Listing 12 shows the Activity class CreatingXML.

package android.xml;

import android.app.Activity;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.widget.TextView;
import javax.xml.parsers.DocumentBuilderFactory;
import javax.xml.parsers.DocumentBuilder;
import javax.xml.parsers.ParserConfigurationException;
import org.w3c.dom.Document;
import org.w3c.dom.Element;
import javax.xml.transform.TransformerFactory;
import javax.xml.transform.Transformer;
import java.util.Properties;
import javax.xml.transform.OutputKeys;

import javax.xml.transform.TransformerConfigurationException;
import javax.xml.transform.TransformerException;

import javax.xml.transform.dom.DOMSource;
import javax.xml.transform.stream.StreamResult;
import java.io.OutputStream;
import java.io.ByteArrayOutputStream;
import javax.xml.transform.dom.DOMSource;

public class CreatingXML extends Activity {
    /** Called when the activity is first created. */
    @Override
    public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        setContentView(R.layout.main);
        TextView     xmlResult = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.xmlresult);

        try {
        DocumentBuilderFactory documentBuilderFactory = DocumentBuilderFactory
                      .newInstance();
            DocumentBuilder documentBuilder = documentBuilderFactory
                      .newDocumentBuilder();
            Document document = documentBuilder.newDocument();

            Element rootElement = document.createElement("catalog");
            rootElement.setAttribute("journal", "Oracle Magazine");
            rootElement.setAttribute("publisher", "Oracle Publishing");
            document.appendChild(rootElement);

            Element articleElement = document.createElement("article");
            rootElement.appendChild(articleElement);

            Element editionElement = document.createElement("edition");
            articleElement.appendChild(editionElement);
            editionElement.
            appendChild(document.createTextNode("Sept-Oct 2005"));

            Element titleElement = document.createElement("title");
            articleElement.appendChild(titleElement);
            titleElement.appendChild(document
                      .createTextNode("Creating Search Pages"));

            Element authorElement = document.createElement("author");
            articleElement.appendChild(authorElement);
            authorElement.
            appendChild(document.createTextNode("Steve Muench"));

            articleElement = document.createElement("article");
            rootElement.appendChild(articleElement);

            editionElement = document.createElement("edition");
            articleElement.appendChild(editionElement);
            editionElement.appendChild(document
                      .createTextNode("November - December 2010"));

            titleElement = document.createElement("title");
            articleElement.appendChild(titleElement);
            titleElement.appendChild(document
                      .createTextNode("Agile Enterprise Architecture"));

            authorElement = document.createElement("author");
            articleElement.appendChild(authorElement);
            authorElement.appendChild(document.createTextNode("Bob Rhubart"));

            TransformerFactory factory = TransformerFactory.newInstance();
            Transformer transformer = factory.newTransformer();
            Properties outFormat = new Properties();
            outFormat.setProperty(OutputKeys.INDENT, "yes");
            outFormat.setProperty(OutputKeys.METHOD, "xml");
            outFormat.setProperty(OutputKeys.OMIT_XML_DECLARATION, "no");
            outFormat.setProperty(OutputKeys.VERSION, "1.0");
            outFormat.setProperty(OutputKeys.ENCODING, "UTF-8");
            transformer.setOutputProperties(outFormat);
            DOMSource domSource = 
            new DOMSource(document.getDocumentElement());
            OutputStream output = new ByteArrayOutputStream();
            StreamResult result = new StreamResult(output);
            transformer.transform(domSource, result);
            String xmlString = output.toString();
            xmlResult.setText(xmlString);

        } catch (ParserConfigurationException e) {
        } catch (TransformerConfigurationException e) {
        } catch (TransformerException e) {
        }

    }
}

At this point you can run the Android application. Right-click on the CreatingXML application node and select Run As > Android Application, as in Figure 3.

The Android AVD starts and the Android application deploys on the AVD, as in Figure 4.

Click the CreatingXML application icon. The application activity starts, and the XML document is created and displayed on the Android device, as in Figure 5.

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Parsing an XML document

This section explains how to parse an XML document. You can use the standard DOM and SAX parsers or another parser. In the example, which uses the org.xmlpull.v1.XmlPullParser, you'll parse the XML document catalog.xml as in Listing 13.

<?xml version = '1.0' encoding = 'UTF-8'?>
<catalog journal="Oracle Magazine" publisher="Oracle Publishing">
     <article>
          <edition>Sept-Oct 2005</edition>
          <title>Creating Search Pages</title>
          <author>Steve Muench</author>
     </article>
     <article>
          <edition>November - December 2010</edition>
          <title>Agile Enterprise Architecture</title>
          <author>Bob Rhubart</author>
     </article>
</catalog>

As in the previous section, Creating an XML document, you need to create an Android project for parsing the XML document.

1. In the Eclipse IDE, select File > New. In the New dialog, select Android > Android Project. Click Next.
2. In the New Android Project window, as in Figure 6, specify:
   • Project name: ParsingXML
   • Build Target check box: Android Platform 3.0 and API 11.
   • Properties:
     • Application name: ParsingXML
     • Package name: android.xml
     • Select Create Activity: Activity class (ParsingXML)
     • Minimum SDK version: 11
   
   
   Figure 6. Create an Android project for parsing an XML document
   
   
   
3. Click Finish.

   An Android project is created. It consists of:

   • An Activity class ParsingXML
   • A res/layout/main.xml file for layout
   • An AndroidManifest.xml file for application configuration

Parse the XML document and use labels to output the element values. The labels and element text node values are output to TextView widgets.

1. In the main.xml file, add a TextView widget for each label and element text node value.
2. Create a LinearLayout and set android:orientation to "vertical".
3. Add the TextView elements with the following ids:
   • "journal_label"
   • "journal"
   • "publisher_label"
   • "publisher"
   • "edition1_label"
   • "edition1"
   • "title1_label"
   • "title1"
   • "author1_label"
   • "author1"
   • "edition2_label"
   • "title2_label"
   • "title2"
   • "author2_label"
   • "author2"

Listing 14 shows the main.xml file.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
     android:orientation="vertical" android:layout_width="fill_parent"
     android:layout_height="fill_parent">
          <TextView android:id="@+id/journal_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Journal:" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/journal" android:singleLine="true"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/publisher_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Publisher:" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/publisher"
               android:singleLine="true"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition1_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Edition:" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition1" android:singleLine="true"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 			
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/title1_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:text="Title:" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/title1" 			
               android:singleLine="true" android:layout_width="fill_parent"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/author1_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:text="Author:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/author1" android:singleLine="true"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition2_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Edition:" />


          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition2" android:singleLine="true"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/title2_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:text="Title:" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/title2" 			
               android:singleLine="true" android:layout_width="fill_parent"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/author2_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" android:text="Author:" />
          <TextView android:id="@+id/author2" android:singleLine="true"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />
</LinearLayout>

In the AndroidManifest.xml file, specify:

• The activity to launch as ParsingXML
• Minimum Android version 11 with the uses-sdk element
• activity, intent-filter, and action with the activity element and subelements

Listing 15 shows the resulting AndroidManifest.xml file:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
      package="android.xml"
      android:versionCode="1"
      android:versionName="1.0">
    <uses-sdk android:minSdkVersion="11" />

    <application android:icon="@drawable/icon" android:label="@string/app_name">
        <activity android:name=".ParsingXML"
                  android:label="@string/app_name">
            <intent-filter>
                <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
                <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
            </intent-filter>
        </activity>

    </application>
</manifest>

To parse the XML document resource, the example uses the android.content.res.XmlResourceParser, which extends the XmlPullParser interface. You need to create a directory in the res directory for the XML document.

1. Create a directory called xml in the res directory, then copy the XML document catalog.xml to the res/xml directory.
2. In the ParsingXML activity class, import the android.content.res.XmlResourceParser and org.xmlpull.v1.XmlPullParser interfaces.

   The onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) method is invoked when the activity is started.

3. In the onCreate method, set the UI using the setContentView method and the layout resource, like so: setContentView(R.layout.main);
4. Get the Android TextView widgets defined in the main.xml file using the findViewById method and the widget ids, as in Listing 16.

TextView journal = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.journal);
TextView publisher = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.publisher);
TextView edition1 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.edition1);
TextView title1 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.title1);
TextView author1 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.author1);
TextView edition2 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.edition2);
TextView title2 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.title2);
TextView author2 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.author2);

Create an XmlResourceParser object from the catalog.xml document in the res/xml directory with the following code: XmlResourceParser xpp = getResources().getXml(R.xml.catalog);.

You will parse the XML document using the XmlResourceParser, which is also a pull parser (it extends the XmlPullParser interface). With the pull parser, an XML document is just a sequence of parsing events. Obtain the next parsing event using the next() method, as follows: xpp.next();.

Obtain the event type using the getEventType method int, which returns an int: eventType = xpp.getEventType();.

The returned int might have one of the values in Table 1.

The XML document has only elements and element text nodes to parse. Attributes do not generate an event, and you can retrieve them from an element. You'll find only the START_TAG and TEXT event types, which correspond with element start tags and element text nodes. First, determine the element tag and then get the text node value for the element tag. Use the int variable iter to indicate the different "article" elements in the XML document, and the String variable elemtext to specify the element tag name. To specify an int variable for an iterator and a String variable for element name, use the code in Listing 17.

int iter = 0;
String elemtext = null;

Before the end of the XML document is reached:

• Determine the event types
• Obtain the element tag names and element tag text values
• Set the text node values on the corresponding TextView widgets

For example, get the element tag name as in Listing 18.

while (eventType != XmlPullParser.END_DOCUMENT) {
              if (eventType == XmlPullParser.START_TAG) {
         String elemName = xpp.getName();
...
...
                                                         }
                                                 }

If the element tag name is "catalog", obtain the attribute values for "journal" and "publisher" and set the attribute values on the "journal" and "publisher" TextView widgets. Use the getAttributeValue() method of the XmlResourceParser to get the attribute values, as in Listing 19.

if (elemName.equals("catalog")) {			
String journalAttr = xpp.getAttributeValue(null,"journal");
String publisherAttr = xpp.getAttributeValue(null,"publisher");
journal.setText(journalAttr);				
publisher.setText(publisherAttr);	
...
}

Increment the iterator variable iter for each "article" element, as in Listing 20.

if (elemName.equals("article")) {
     iter = iter + 1;
                                 }

Obtain the text node values if the event type is TEXT and set the text node values on the corresponding TextView widgets. Use the elemtext String variable, which was set for event type START_TAG, to get the element tag name. Use the getText() method of the XmlResourceParser to get the text node value. Set the text node values on the TextView widgets using the setText method, as in Listing 21.

else if (eventType == XmlPullParser.TEXT) {
//Obtain the element name and element text node values and 
//set the text node values on the corresponding TextView 
//widgets
}

Listing 22 shows the Activity class ParsingXML.

package android.xml;

import android.app.Activity;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.widget.TextView;
import org.xmlpull.v1.XmlPullParser;
import org.xmlpull.v1.XmlPullParserException;
import java.io.IOException;
import android.content.res.XmlResourceParser;

public class ParsingXML extends Activity {
    /** Called when the activity is first created. */
    @Override
    public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
         super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
         //setContentView(R.layout.main);
         setContentView(R.layout.relativelayout);
         TextView journal = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.journal);
         TextView publisher = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.publisher);
         TextView edition1 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.edition1);
         TextView title1 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.title1);
         TextView author1 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.author1);

         TextView edition2 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.edition2);
         TextView title2 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.title2);
         TextView author2 = (TextView) findViewById(R.id.author2);
         try {
              XmlResourceParser xpp = getResources().getXml(R.xml.catalog);
			
              xpp.next();
              int eventType = xpp.getEventType();
              int iter = 0;
              String elemtext = null;

              while (eventType != XmlPullParser.END_DOCUMENT) {

                 if (eventType == XmlPullParser.START_TAG) {

                     String elemName = xpp.getName();
                     if (elemName.equals("catalog")) {
                 String journalAttr = xpp.getAttributeValue(null,
                                  "journal");
                 String publisherAttr = xpp.getAttributeValue(null,
                                  "publisher");
                        journal.setText(journalAttr);
                        publisher.setText(publisherAttr);
                     }
                     if (elemName.equals("article")) {
                        iter = iter + 1;
                     }
					
                     if (elemName.equals("edition")) {
                        elemtext = "edition";
                     }
                     if (elemName.equals("title")) {
                        elemtext = "title";
                     }
                     if (elemName.equals("author")) {
                        elemtext = "author";
                     }
                 }

                 else if (eventType == XmlPullParser.TEXT) {
                     if (iter == 1) {
                        if (elemtext.equals("edition")) {
                             edition1.setText(xpp.getText());
                        } else if (elemtext.equals("title")) {
                             title1.setText(xpp.getText());
                        } else if (elemtext.equals("author")) {
                             author1.setText(xpp.getText());
                        }
                     }

                     else if (iter == 2) {
                        if (elemtext.equals("edition")) {
                             edition2.setText(xpp.getText());
                        } else if (elemtext.equals("title")) {
                             title2.setText(xpp.getText());
                        } else if (elemtext.equals("author")) {
                             author2.setText(xpp.getText());
                        }

                     }
                 }
                 eventType = xpp.next();
              }

         } catch (XmlPullParserException e) {
         } catch (IOException e) {
         }

    }
}

To run the Android application, right-click on the ParsingXML application and select Run As > Android Application, as in Figure 7.

The Android AVD starts, and the ParsingXML application installs on the Android device, as in Figure 8.

Click on the ParsingXML application to start the application activity. The XML document catalog.xml is parsed and output to the Android device, as in Figure 9.

The element labels and element text nodes are stacked vertically. A layout in which the text node values are to the right of the corresponding labels would be preferable. For a custom layout with the text node values to the right of the labels, use RelativeLayout instead of LinearLayout. Use the android:layout_marginLeft attribute of the TextView widget for the text node values to appear to the right of the labels. Use the android:layout_below attribute to make the text node values appear below the text node values in the preceding row.

RelativeLayout provides other attributes, such as android:layout_toRightOf, to output a widget to the right of another widget and android:layout_toLeftOf to output a component to the left of another component. Listing 23 shows the main.xml for a relative layout.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

<RelativeLayout
     xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
     android:layout_width="fill_parent"
     android:layout_height="wrap_content"
     android:padding="5px">

          <TextView android:id="@+id/journal_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Journal:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/journal"  
               android:layout_marginLeft="50px"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/publisher_label" 
               android:layout_below="@id/journal_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Publisher:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/publisher"
               android:layout_below="@id/journal"
               android:layout_marginLeft="70px"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition1_label"  
               android:layout_below="@id/publisher_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Edition:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition1" 
               android:layout_below="@id/publisher"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_marginLeft="50px"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/title1_label" 
               android:layout_below="@id/edition1_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" 
               android:text="Title:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/title1" 
               android:layout_marginLeft="40px" 
               android:layout_below="@id/edition1"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/author1_label" 
               android:layout_below="@id/title1_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" 
               android:text="Author:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/author1" 
               android:layout_below="@id/title1"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_marginLeft="50px"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition2_label" 
               android:layout_below="@id/author1_label"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content"
               android:text="Edition:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/edition2" 
               android:layout_below="@id/author1"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_marginLeft="50px"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@id/title2_label" 
               android:layout_below="@id/edition2_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" 
               android:text="Title:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/title2" 
               android:layout_marginLeft="40px" 
               android:layout_below="@id/edition2"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

          <TextView android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:id="@+id/author2_label" 
               android:layout_below="@id/title2_label"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" 
               android:text="Author:" />

          <TextView android:id="@+id/author2" 
               android:layout_below="@id/title2"
               android:layout_width="fill_parent" 
               android:layout_marginLeft="50px"
               android:layout_height="wrap_content" />

</RelativeLayout>

Rerun the ParsingXML application after you modify the layout. The XML document parses and outputs node values in the specified layout, as in Figure 10.

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Summary

You can create and parse an XML document on the Android 3.0 platform, which is used for both smartphones and mobile tablets. In the examples in this article, you used the standard DocumentBuilder and Transformer APIs on Android to create an XML document. You learned to use XMLResourceParser, which extends the XmlPullParser, to parse an XML document.

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Download

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Resources

Learn

• Android: Learn how to create Android applications.
  
  
• Working with XML on Android (Michael Galpin, developerWorks, June 2009): Explore different options for working with XML on Android as you build your own Android apps in this review of XML APIs for Android.
  
  
• Build dynamic user interfaces with Android and XML (Frank Ableson, developerWorks, September 2010): Learn about a simple architecture for designing similar applications for Android—dynamic user interfaces that allow non-programmers to collect data from mobile users.
  
  
• Using XML and JSON with Android, Part 1: Explore the benefits of JSON and XML in Android applications (Frank Ableson, developerWorks, August 2010): Get the basics of XML and JSON. Learn how to build an Android application that parses and displays a Twitter status-update feed provided in both formats.
  
  
• Using XML and JSON with Android, Part 2: Deliver hybrid Android applications with JSON (Frank Ableson, developerWorks, August 2010): Explore how to use a mix of JavaScript, JSON, callback functions, and Android-SDK Java code for flexible mobile apps.
  
  
• Android content on developerWorks: Explore articles, demos, and tutorials about Android.
  
  
• More articles by this author (Deepak Vohra, developerWorks, April 2005-current): Read articles about Android, Ajax, PHP, XML, web services, Ruby on Rails, EJB, and other technologies.
  
  
• New to XML? Get the resources you need to learn XML.
  
  
• XML area on developerWorks: Find the resources you need to advance your skills in the XML arena, including DTDs, schemas, and XSLT. See the XML technical library for a wide range of technical articles and tips, tutorials, standards, and IBM Redbooks.
  
  
• IBM XML certification: Find out how you can become an IBM-Certified Developer in XML and related technologies.
  
  
• developerWorks technical events and webcasts: Stay current with technology in these sessions.
  
  
• developerWorks on Twitter: Join today to follow developerWorks tweets.
  
  
• developerWorks podcasts: Listen to interesting interviews and discussions for software developers.
  
  
• developerWorks on-demand demos: Watch demos ranging from product installation and setup for beginners to advanced functionality for experienced developers.
  
  

Get products and technologies

• Android SDK: Get the latest tools or platform.
  
  
• Android Development Tools (ADT): Download this plug-in that gives you a powerful, integrated environment in which to build Android applications.
  
  
• JDK 6.0.: Get the latest Java™ releases, including performance improvements and bug fixes.
  
  
• Eclipse for Java EE.: Download the latest version.
  
  
• IBM product evaluation versions: Download or explore the online trials in the IBM SOA Sandbox and get your hands on application development tools and middleware products from DB2®, Lotus®, Rational®, Tivoli®, and WebSphere®.
  
  

Discuss

• developerWorks profile: Create your profile today and set up a watchlist on the Blogger Data API.
  
  
• XML zone discussion forums: Participate in any of several XML-related discussions.
  
  
• The developerWorks community: Connect with other developerWorks users while exploring the developer-driven blogs, forums, groups, and wikis.
  
  

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Table of contents

• Introduction
• Setting up the environment
• Creating an XML document
• Parsing an XML document
• Summary
• Download
• Resources
• About the author
• Comments

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