help! Problem reading XML documents

Category: Geeks r Us

Post 1 by SilverLightning (I've now got the silver prolific poster award! wahoo!) on Tuesday, 31-Jan-2012 16:05:53

I've been given a few files for school that are in XML format. I've never used this format before. I had a friend who told me to open the files with internet explorer, which I did, but it only comes up blank. I can't find anything about this online, at least nothing I can decode. Can anyone help?

Post 2 by sjtaylor (I can't call it a day til I enter the zone BBS) on Thursday, 02-Feb-2012 17:56:01

Your friend is correct. A browser such as Internet Explorer should open the files. Was there perhaps a sound that indicated blocked content? This will be prefixed with, 'to help protect your security', and will be near the top of the IE window.

Post 3 by SilverLightning (I've now got the silver prolific poster award! wahoo!) on Thursday, 02-Feb-2012 22:24:53

Nope, the window opened, but the screen reader doesn't read anything on the page. It just says blank, no matter what I do.

Post 4 by DevilishAnthony (Just go on and agree with me. You know you want to.) on Friday, 03-Feb-2012 3:15:14

What happens if you try opening it in notepad?

Post 5 by SilverLightning (I've now got the silver prolific poster award! wahoo!) on Friday, 03-Feb-2012 11:14:43

It opens in notepad, but its full of gibberish that I can't figure out. It will have one or two sentences of the text, then a bunch of gibberish, then another two or three sentences that aren't sequential to the ones before.

Post 6 by LeoGuardian (You mean there is something outside of this room with my computer in it?) on Friday, 03-Feb-2012 12:32:35

Open it in Firefox, Cody. Internet Exposer can be a problem when it shouldn't ... used to be IE did xml just fine.
XML for those that don't know is a logical structured markup language used to describe data. It does a lot better than HTML because it's exact and logically structured, unlike the tag soup that html usually is.
Not that most people care about the last threee sentences of that. But seriously. Open in Firegox.
If that doesn't work if you open it in any version of Word 2003 or later -best 2007 or later - that should also import with a couple bitch boxes about conversion just press the OK or Yes Dear button and it'll quit naggin and open the file.
Firefox first, if you have it, and Word second if you have that.
Hope that helps.

Post 7 by Senior (I've now got the bronze prolific poster award! now going for the silver award!) on Friday, 03-Feb-2012 18:39:27

Microsoft Excell may also display the data as it is intended to be displayed.

Post 8 by SilverLightning (I've now got the silver prolific poster award! wahoo!) on Friday, 03-Feb-2012 19:39:16

Thanks, I'll try these.