Book excerpt: XML is everywhere in the Microsoft .NET Framework, from Remoting to Web services and from data access to configuration. Learn about the extensive XML core classes in .NET and find out how to program against its parser in this in-depth guide--written by a popular programming author and consultant on cutting-edge technologies such as Microsoft ASP.NET and Microsoft ADO.NET. You'll find authoritative explanations of technologies such as schemas, transformations, and XPath, plus extensive discussion of data access issues such as synchronization and serialization, the DiffGram format, and the XML extensions in Microsoft SQL Server 2000. Along the way, you'll learn exactly how to get the best performance out of XML in the .NET world. You'll also get answers to common questions such as, "When should I use XML Web services instead of Remoting?" Topics covered include: XML CORE CLASSES IN THE .NET FRAMEWORK The .NET XML parsing model XML readers and writers Validating readers and writers XML Schema XML DATA MANIPULATION The XML DOM in .NET XPath XSLT XML AND DATA ACCESS XML extensions in SQL Server 2000 DataSet serialization The DiffGram format APPLICATION INTEROPERABILITY The XML Serializer .NET Remoting XML Web services XML data islands Configuration files