Detailed introduction to the use of XML-based thinking to organize data (Figure)

In the past, data was transferred from the terminal of the dedicated network protocol to the big iron box in the "glass house" through manual input. Currently, the information is ubiquitous and always absent, however, it may not always be summarized into your company. most of the time, people share data in a "flat" world. There are many sources of information, and information changes are also frequent. With the emergence of a series of concepts such as Web2.0, ise2.0, and InternetServiceBus, you find that it is far less convenient to find the warehouse address provided by the supplier from your "Glass House. Preface

The Times have changed.

In the past, data was transferred from the terminal of the dedicated network protocol to the big iron box in the "glass house" through manual input. Currently, the information is ubiquitous and always absent, however, it may not always be summarized into your company. most of the time, people share data in a "flat" world. There are many sources of information, and information changes are also frequent. With the emergence of a series of concepts such as Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, and Internet Service Bus, you find that finding the repository address provided by the supplier from your "Glass House" is far less convenient than Google Map.

IT seems that the shackles of data have been broken one by one on the internet. However, as IT practitioners, our job is to provide users with the data they need and the means they want to obtain information, therefore, applications must be able to withstand various changes, including changes in the user interfaces that we previously cared about, changes in inter-application calls, and changes in the internal logic of applications, there is also a fast pace, but it is the most fundamental change-the changes of the data itself.

The relational model tells us to use a two-dimensional table to describe the world of information, but this is too "no". just look at a book at hand or the home decoration plan, and the task of starting a project is to be split up immediately, it seems that it is not appropriate to enclose a two‑dimensional table, and even if the "entity-relationship" is used to make the best effort, in a fast-changing environment, there are always a series of changes that involve "data-application-frontend interaction", and they often take the lead.

It seems that many new-generation applications have found a solution that is more suitable for new trends-XML, which organizes applications and organizes user experience in a way that is closer to our own thinking. So for enterprises, can the basic work of organizing data also be carried out using XML thinking? Yes.

Respond to changes in data entities

In the past, data entities were always assumed to be the most stable part of applications, whether we use design patterns or various open-source development frameworks (including the frameworks themselves) all of them are trying to adapt to changes in the application itself. what is the actual situation?

L The data entities we need to exchange often need to be changed according to the needs of ourselves and our partners;

L The data entities provided to us by our partners also often change;

L with the introduction of the concepts of SOA and Enterprise 2.0, data entities themselves have been pulled up from multiple source mash, and data entities themselves have been repeatedly assembled and combined;

L as the business is refined, our employees always want more and more detailed information;

Therefore, in the past, we thought that the data entities that can be fixed as early as needed should be constantly adjusted before the increasingly agile technology and business status. To adapt to this requirement, we can start from top to bottom and constantly adjust the flexibility of the application itself. the other way is to solve this problem from the "root, using new data models that can constantly adapt to these changes, such as XML data models and XML-related technical families.

For example, when defining a user object, the following information is enough at first. ICustomer is the user interface used by the application, and CUSTOMER is the representation in the relational database mode, For XML:

Here, the application first understands that the object currently being processed is goose meat. because goose meat is a kind of black meat, and black meat is a kind of poultry meat (fowl), poultry meat can be eaten, therefore, the application can gradually infer that goose meat can be consumed. The above inference process is not complex, but if the implementation of relational database service is relatively complicated, it is more difficult to use plain text to write data, imagine if the relationship between poultry meat and vegetables, desserts, and seafood are all written in relational databases or text at the same time, it would be too difficult to apply. Different from XML, XML can naturally be close to our habits of thinking and describe the semantics we are familiar with in an open but intertwined way, whether it is the preparation process of production materials in the enterprise ERP environment, or preparing a purchase plan for a birthday Party.

Summary

It may be restricted by two-dimensional grids for too long. our application design and ideas are increasingly constrained by computer processing. However, as the business environment changes, from business needs to application implementation and release, we need to pull our thinking back from the computer, at this time, it seems more desirable to adopt a data technology that is more open and close to our divergent thinking. We can continue to adopt various mature technologies for organizations after data is implemented. However, at the business level and in a more variable environment, it seems that XML flexibility and power are both good.

The above is a detailed description of the XML-based thinking Organization data (graphs). For more information, see other related articles in the first PHP community!