The fifth edition of the XML Handbook is an interesting beast all in
itself. It's huge. The size of no other 'handbook' I have ever read,
weighing in at 1200 pages. My guess is that this book has grown from
edition to edition and has become the beast we see now. Starting with
the negative:

* The organization of the book needs work. The chapters are in an
almost random order. For example, the chapter that describes XML at an
introductory level is number 51, which is almost at the back of the
book.

* The organization of each chapter needs to be normalized into a format
that would ensure that each possesses valuable information. This book
is somewhat similar to the classic Design Patterns book in that it
covers a wide variety of topics. Having a chapter format that readers
can follow will make it easier to use the book as a reference work.

* The graphics are inconsistent at best. Some are horrible in quality.
Others are too large. I wouldn't have bought the book if I were
flipping through it at the store. The quality of the graphics, which
seem to be largely borrowed company graphics, is too inconsistent.

* The chapters are very short. There are 69 chapters in a 1200 page
book. You do the math. The chapter on XSL:FO, for example, is six pages
long. Barely enough text to introduce the topic, let alone explain it.

* The book is not self-referential. For example, the topic of vector
versus bitmap graphics is covered twice. And the chapter on acronyms
simply lists their definitions without pointing the reader back into
the book for more information about where those acronyms are explained
in more detail. My guess is that this is an outgrowth of the organic
development of the book.

All that being said, I am still giving the book a good rating because I
believe that it is a unique resource in the XML world. It's chapters
cover a variety of topics so sweeping that it provides a high level
overview of the entire map of XML development. Chapter 66, which
provides an overview of all of the different MLs is very good. Other
chapters, such as the RDF chapter (36) are also a very good
introduction. The breadth of the coverage is what makes this book
unique. All of the drill-down technology specifics are covered better
in other books.

Is it worth buying? Tough to say. I think for someone tasked with a
high-level understanding of XML it is a valuable resource because it
provides an excellent tree-top perspective of the XML landscape. For
someone who is thick in the implementation of XML standards, it's
probably not worth it.

What the book really needs is a thorough development editing pass to
reorganize the book, normalize the chapters, remove redundant content,
and to fix the problems with the illustrations and the text.

It might not be enough for the code gurus, but then it all goes to the tools you're using: for example XML programming has different flavors if you're using .NET instead of Java.
For documents, schemas, etcetera and to get you on a page with the standard this has all the information you need.
It's a "handbook", a good one too.

In this book you can find almost any applications of XML, including the latest development of Web services and VoiceXML.

It's especially for students who want to look for a project/thesis topic on XML or CTOs who wish to understand the business various scenarios where XML can be applied.

Admittedly, with 69 chapters in about 1100 pages, this book cannot have too much depth. Don't expect to use it as a daily programming reference book. It's more like a jump board that can set you in a specific direction of the XML world --- Then you should consult a more detailed book on that specific topic. It also introduces the various business software around XML.

Besides, this book is very entertaining.

There is nothing in this book's title or product description that indicates that it teaches XML programming. If that's the type of book you're seeking I recommend "Definitive XML Application Development" by Lars Marius Garshol. If, however, you're an architect, chief technical officer or IT functional manager this book will provide you with one of the most complete and comprehensive descriptions of XML that's available.

What you get is a thorough examination of XML, from its SGML beginnings to what it has evolved into, how to use it to solve real business problems, and the related specifications. Because this book is over 1200 pages it can be overwhelming. However, you need not read it in sequence, or even cover-to-cover to get value. It's a reference and a business case combined, and is best used as a resource in the architecture group or shared among developers who need to ensure that what is being developed is in line with W3C specifications. In addition, the overwhelming array of applications that come on the two CD ROMs will save a lot of time downloading trial copies from their vendors, and give you many choices to evaluate for internal use. It also saves expensive developer (or consultant) time and corporate bandwidth.

If you work with XML you'll find this book to be one of the best general references you can own. Better yet, get "The Definitive XML Professional Toolkit", which contains this book and two others, and you'll have a ready-made XML reference library.

This book does have a wide array of topics, but no depth. There is a lot of history, which is to be expected from a guy who invented something like SGML. It's a big and heavy book with little practical material. Mostly academic, historical, and weak on details. Many chapters were not written by the authors listed on the front, but by vendors, and some of their material looks like marketing BS.

In a few places it mentions specific tools, but most of it is hand-waving, "this stuff can do everything in the world" sort of material. The tutorials are very sketchy, and the chapters on how to do DTDs and schemas are incomplete. The basic information about XML itself isn't even covered until you've plowed through 760 pages. A lot of theory and almost no practice - and the practice there is, is so basic and incomplete that it's not worth the effort to read.

The two CD's contain mostly 30-day trial shovelware you could download off the web for free - not the "175 genuinely free software packages" touted on the front cover. A lot of those "175 packages" are in fact just W3C specifications. It's the kind of book you want on your shelf if you want others to think you're technical. If you don't know anything about XML and need some technical knowledge, go ahead and get it. If you are a programmer or anyone looking for details on things like schemas, DTDs and syntax, look elsewhere.

A more useful, more concise and much cheaper alternative would be CodeNotes for XML, by Gregory Brill.

At 1200 pages this book is probably one of the most complete references that one can have. It covers every conceivable topic, ranging from a good description of XML and how it evolved from SGML, to semantic web and web services (each of which are disciplines onto themselves).

Expected topics are given in-depth treatment (XML, schemas, DTDs, datatypes, XSLT, XSL-FO, XLink, XPath, XPointer, XSDL, namespaces, topic maps, RDF, SOAP, UDDI, WSDL and VoiceXML), with a focus on the following:
- integration of XML and the older EDI approaches to e-commerce and extended supply chain systems
- a sound approach to content management
- how XML fits into the web services framework
- chapters on important topics such as portals, databases, content acquisition, conversion and publishing
- a series of chapters devoted to tutorials on XML basics, schemas, and transformation and navigation protocols

In addition this book comes with two CD ROMs that are packed with applications such as IBM's AlphaWorks suite and NeoCore XMS Native XML Database (Personal Edition). A trial version of TurboXML IDE & Schema Editor is also included among the 175 programs on the CD ROM set.

This is an overwhelming book for beginners, but is a valuable resource for anyone who is deeply involved in web services, XML and related technologies. If you fit the latter category this is probably the only XML reference you'll need.