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HTML forms, such as email forms and order forms, are perhaps the most important components of a website. Without forms, webmasters would not be able to collect information from their site visitors, and they would not be able to accept online credit card orders from their customers, which is the heart and soul of ecommerce. Imagine how useless the internet would be if it were just a bunch of information and pictures with no way to communicate or conduct business.
HTML表单,如:email表单和订购表单,都是网站重要的组成部分。如果没有表单,网络管理员就不能从访问者那里收集信息,并接受在线信用卡服务,要知道,这可是电子商务的核心啊。想想看,如果一个网站只是展示了大量的图片,却没有可以用于业务交流和业务联系的方式,那么这个网站还有用处可言吗?
Now that the internet has been around for a little over 10 years, HTML forms are starting to become outmoded and obsolete. The kind of forms that website owners now want to compose for their websites are so incredibly diverse and complicated that simple HTML code no longer suffices. So, another way of building forms has evolved in response to this need.
至今为止,互联网差不多已经走过了10年光景,HTML表单也开始变的过时和陈旧了。现在,网站所有者们对表单的需求也在飞速地变化,他们希望使用一些更加复杂一点的表单,简单的HTML表单已经不能再满足他们的需求了。因此,新型表单开发的革命爆发了。
The answer is the XForm. XForms provide a superior way to build web-based forms that are richer, more versatile, and device independent. All new versions of browsers being introduced are going to support XForms.
这个新型的表单就是XForm。XForms提供了更加强大的网络表单创建方式。它塑造的表单功能强大,独立于设备并且是通用的。所有的新版本浏览器都被推荐支持XForms。
How are XForms different from regular HTML forms? Well, XForms use XML for data definition, and use HTML or XHTML for data display. XML is a markup language like HTML. However, XML enables to you define and create your own tags. So, using XML for data definition gives programmers more flexibility for data definition. Data entered into an XForm is stored in an XML document and then transported over the internet using XML.
XForms表单和平时我们所说的HTML表单到底有什么不同呢?XForms是使用XML定义数据的,然而,它又是使用HTML和XHTML来显示数据的。XML也是一种类似于HTML的标记语言,然而XML可以使你定义和创建你自己的标记。所以,程序员使用XML可以更加方便地进行数据定义。输入到XForm中的数据被存储在XML文档中,并使用XML在互联网中进行传输。
XForms are going to become immensely more important as time goes on, because so many different kinds of electronic gadgets that run on different platforms are equipped with internet access, and since XForms use XML, XForms are compatible with most or all of these various devices. It is possible to add XForm elements directly into other applications that run on XML, such as SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics), VoiceXML (speaking web data), and WML (Wireless Markup Language).
XForms已经变得越来越重要。因为各种在不同平台上运行的电子器具都配有互连网访问设备,并且,因为XForms使用的是XML,所以它与所有种类的设备都是兼容的。所以,你可以直接在运行XML的应用程序上添加XForm元素,如:SVG(Scalable Vector Graphic:可变动的矢量图形),VoiceXML(speaking web data:网络发声音频数据)以及WML(无线标记语言)。
This compatibility of an XForm with so many different platforms is what makes it so significant. Web browsers that run on a cell phone, for example, may not be able to display certain HTML forms because HTML defines precisely how a form is to be displayed. If that cell phone has a browser that is not capable of displaying that HTML form exactly as the HTML code specifies, then the person trying to access that form on their cell phone may not be able to input data into the form, or the browser may not be able to display the form at all.
因为XForm与很多不同的平台都能兼容,所以它非常重要。比如:一个在手机上运行的网络浏览器,可能不能够显示HTML表单,因为HTML精确定义了表单的显示方式。如果手机中的浏览器不能按照HTML源代码所定义的表单格式显示的话,那么可能导致人们无法在表单中输入数据,或者浏览器根本就不能显示该表单。
The advantage of an XForm is that it leaves it up to the browser to decide how to display the form. Thus, XForms can run on any platform running on any type of device, be it a handheld computer, cell phone, or personal computer. In a nutshell, XForms are forms without all the limitations associated with HTML forms.
XForm的优点就是:它是脱离浏览器来定义表单的显示方式的。XForms可以在任何类型设备的任何平台上运行,如:手提式电脑、手机以及个人电脑。总而言之,XML是一种不受任何限制的HTML表单。
So, if you are a web designer or programmer, be wary of the fact that some people will not be accessing your forms from an ordinary PC. So, you should learn how to create XForms to accommodate your end user, so that the form will work properly regardless of what sort of device they might be using to surf the net.
因此,如果你是一个网络设计是或程序设计师,请记住一点,不是每一个人都是通过普通的个人电脑来访问你的表单的。所以,你必须学会创建XForms表单来满足终端用户的需求。这样的话,不管用户使用什么样的设备上网,表单都能够正常运行。