.NET, XML, XPath Expressions, and Nodes

These are introductory topics on using or following a path to locate an XML node. These include locating the root of an element, getting a list of its children and grand children, and accessing nodes.

2 - INTRODUCTION TO ARRAYS

Arrays, Position, Nodes (Children, Grand Children)

The primary way to identify an XML node is by its position in the array (or collection) of nodes. Such a position can lead to child nodes (the first, the children, the grand-children, etc).

To support child nodes, the XPath language provides many options. Functions are a great part of it. Primary functions allow you to locate a node based on its position.

Boolean Operators, |, =, !=, <, =<, >, =>

The XPath language provides various types of Boolean operators that use non-alphabetical symbols.

Logical Conjunctions, Disjunctions, AND, OR, NOT

The XPath language supports various logical operations. The operations can be performed using word operators such as "and", "or", and "not". Operations can also be performed with non-alphabetical operators.

Child Nodes, XPath Keywords, Parent Nodes, Child Nodes, Ancestors, Descendants, Siblings

Besides locating a node directly based on its position, a node can also be located using a reference of another node, such as the child or the grand-child of a certain node, the parent, grand-parent, or ancestor of a node.

XML Attributes (Names, Values, etc), Parents

The XPath language fully supports XML attributes. Based on this, you can search and locate an attribute using its name, its parent or one of its siblings, etc. Most of te operators used on XML nodes are also available.