Tools

Tools

Small, focused pages for the things people need on the way to getting a query working. Each one explains the task, shows a worked example, and opens that example in the Sandbox so you can run it against real XML. Everything evaluates in your browser — the documents you query never leave your machine.

Every tool

Each page below is a single task, with the example already wired to a built-in sample document.

  • XPath tester — Run XPath 1.0 or 3.1 against your own XML and see every matched node highlighted in the document.
  • Run XQuery online — Write FLWOR expressions and element constructors in the browser — no BaseX or Saxon install.
  • XPath cheat sheet — The syntax worth memorising: axes, node tests, predicates, shorthand, and the function library.
  • XPath axes — All 13 axes in one table, with a diagram showing which nodes each one reaches from the context node.
  • XML well-formedness checker — Paste or upload XML and see whether it parses, with the failing line and the reason.
  • XPath vs XQuery — What XQuery adds over XPath, when the extra power is worth it, and the same task written both ways.
  • XPath vs CSS selector — locator translator — Type a locator in either language and see its equivalent, with both run against a live example document.
  • XPath performance benchmark — Race two XPath expressions over a generated document and see which is faster, and by how much.

XPath tester · Run XQuery online · XPath cheat sheet · XPath axes · XML well-formedness checker · XPath vs XQuery · XPath vs CSS selector — locator translator · XPath performance benchmark

Elsewhere on XML Foundry

The tools are the shallow end. The courses teach XML and XPath from scratch, the reference covers both query languages entry by entry, and Challenges are where you practise.

Sandbox · Free XML and XPath courses · XPath reference · XQuery reference