XForms - The Next Generation of Web Forms

Forms are highly structured information containers. They’re used by just about everyone for one thing or another. Unfortunately, neither paper-based nor HTML-forms work as well as they should. Both types lack connectivity with the other applications that utilize form data. Instead, they’re more concerned with presentation than purpose. Thus, the W3C XML specification XForms is a welcome addition to the data collection landscape.

XForms are particularly useful because, like XML, XForms separate purpose from presentation. In addition, they are far more flexible than their HTML counterparts because they can be utilized on a wide variety of platforms and an increasing number of device types without the need for complex scripting.

For an excellent overview of XForms, see What are XForms? by Micah Dubinko on XML.com.

If you’re ready to start developing XForms now, take this free, online tutorial.