This section provides information on the data model used to represent the contents of the output buffer. The caller needs to understand this data model so that it can effectively process the parsed data stream that has been created in the output buffer.
The z/OS XML parser produces a structured data stream resulting from the parse process. It is a feature that distinguishes the z/OS XML parser from most other XML parsers. The parsed data stream consists of a set of self-describing records representing the output of the parser. These records provide a structure to the data stream that allows a consumer to navigate the data stream as needed. Some of the records represent the actual semantic content of the parsed document, while others provide metadata about the parse itself. There may be more than one group of these records (or record groups) in a single output buffer. This can occur if the input buffer spans multiple times before the output buffer is filled.