Creating XML from schema?

[A. W. Dunstan]

I've got a schema file (four, actually - one includes the other three) and
am trying to create a 'sample' XML file from it.

I tried reading the .xsd files myself but the four of them combined add up
to more than 4000 lines - more than enough to put me to sleep.

I also tried some Java:

SchemaFactory sf =
SchemaFactory.newInstance(XMLConstants.W3C_XML_SCH EMA_NS_URI);
Schema schema = sf.newSchema(new File("/path/to/main/schema/file.xsd"));
DocumentBuilderFactory dbf = DocumentBuilderFactory.newInstance();
dbf.setSchema(schema);
dbf.setNamespaceAware(true);
dbf.setValidating(true);
dbf.setXIncludeAware(true);
DocumentBuilder db = dbf.newDocumentBuilder();
Document d = db.newDocument();

which compiles & runs without incident when run from the directory with the
schema files, but produces an empty Document (zero child nodes).

I'm working on getting a sample XML document from the folks I got the schema
from, but that might take a while.

I've looked around in NetBeans and IntelliJ but haven't seen anything that
looks like it'll do what I want. They can both _validate_ an existing XML
file, but that's what I'm trying to create.

Is there a way to do this?

I realize it might not be possible - some of the nodes might be 'choose
exactly one of A or B', or 'if you have X you must also have Y but if not
then you must have Z' and I'd then need some way of saying which option(s)
to go with.

I really don't care what values the text/numeric fields have; empty (or
zero) would be fine - I can stuff 'realistic' data in afterward, once I've
got the structure of the document spelled out.

thanks!

--
Al Dunstan, Software Engineer
OptiMetrics, Inc.
3115 Professional Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48104-5131

[Martin Honnen]

A. W. Dunstan wrote:

I've got a schema file (four, actually - one includes the other three) and
am trying to create a 'sample' XML file from it.

I tried reading the .xsd files myself but the four of them combined add up
to more than 4000 lines - more than enough to put me to sleep.

I also tried some Java:

I don't know of a Java solution.
Here is an article about doing it with the .NET framework:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa302296.aspx
--

Martin Honnen
http://JavaScript.FAQTs.com/

[A. W. Dunstan]

Found one! Eclipse did a decent job of it. Create a Java project, add the
Schema files to the project, right click on the main schema file & select
Generate->XML.

It gives text fields a value equal to the name of the element itself:

<SpecialNotation attrib="A">SpecialNotation</SpecialNotation>

even though many of them have additional restrictions placed on them -
min/max length, allowed characters (all caps & limited punctuation in this
case), select-from-enumerated-list, etc.

But it gave me a decent structure to start out with; I can fill in valid
values with an editor.
--
Al Dunstan, Software Engineer
OptiMetrics, Inc.
3115 Professional Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48104-5131

[J Leonard]

On Jul 7, 11:26 am, "A. W. Dunstan" <[e-mail]:

I've got a schema file (four, actually - one includes the other three) and
am trying to create a 'sample' XML file from it.

I tried reading the .xsd files myself but the four of them combined add up
to more than 4000 lines - more than enough to put me to sleep.

I also tried some Java:

SchemaFactory sf =
SchemaFactory.newInstance(XMLConstants.W3C_XML_SCH EMA_NS_URI);
Schema schema = sf.newSchema(new File("/path/to/main/schema/file.xsd"));
DocumentBuilderFactory dbf = DocumentBuilderFactory.newInstance();
dbf.setSchema(schema);
dbf.setNamespaceAware(true);
dbf.setValidating(true);
dbf.setXIncludeAware(true);
DocumentBuilder db = dbf.newDocumentBuilder();
Document d = db.newDocument();

which compiles & runs without incident when run from the directory with the
schema files, but produces an empty Document (zero child nodes).

I'm working on getting a sample XML document from the folks I got the schema
from, but that might take a while.

I've looked around in NetBeans and IntelliJ but haven't seen anything that
looks like it'll do what I want. They can both _validate_ an existing XML
file, but that's what I'm trying to create.

Is there a way to do this?

I realize it might not be possible - some of the nodes might be 'choose
exactly one of A or B', or 'if you have X you must also have Y but if not
then you must have Z' and I'd then need some way of saying which option(s)
to go with.

I really don't care what values the text/numeric fields have; empty (or
zero) would be fine - I can stuff 'realistic' data in afterward, once I've
got the structure of the document spelled out.

thanks!

--
Al Dunstan, Software Engineer
OptiMetrics, Inc.
3115 Professional Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48104-5131

I don’t know if this is what you want but Eclipse does this very
nicely.

J Leonard