Capturing Customer Data

So far, most of the customer-related XML applications have been one-way: from the company to the customer. But initiatives are under way (such as the XForms specification being developed by the W3C) for describing Web-based forms in XML. Unlike existing HTML forms, XML forms promise to help constrain data entry based on expected data types and application rules.

XML is a natural format for data collection, but the required tools and platforms are not yet available. Even after XForms becomes an official W3C recommendation, there will be a long wait for Web browsers that support the more sophisticated forms standard.

Although Web-based XML forms will not be available in the near future, proprietary vertical applications ...

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