Faculty of Science
Assignment 2 Term 1, 2014
Introduction
This is an individual assignment in which you can explore the use of extensible files in web programming, using PHP and XML.
Details of the weight of the assignment and due date are given in the course description.
Task Description
Introduction
A simple database with a single table contains data concerning rental properties in Australia. The table contains five fields that store data relating to street address, city, postcode, number of bedrooms and weekly rent e.g. 4/331 Albert Street, Ballarat, 3350, 3, 230.00. There are constraints placed on the data that are described below.
The assignment tasks are closely associated with the lab work of topics 8 to 10. Code which is provided in the topic 10 lab work should be a useful guide throughout this assignment.
The assignment requires a number of files and a report to be produced. The report should respond to written tasks that are included below.
Initial task
In a word document, create a table of about 6 records with no NULLs. The street address may contain a unit number as in the example given above. Add the table to your report, showing clearly the names of the table and the fields.
Tasks supported by Topics 7 and 8
Mark up the table of data using XML tags and save it as an .xml file. Check that the file is well-formed and report the method used. Make a deliberate error and report the error message.
Create a corresponding XMLSchema file (.xsd) that contains the following constraints:
A. the street address and city are strings each with a maximum of 30 characters;
B. the postcode is a string of exactly 4 digits, the first digit being non-zero;
C. the number of bedrooms is an integer between 1 and 5 (inclusive);
D. the weekly rent is a positive (non-zero) number less than 1000 expressed with two decimal places.
Use the .xsd file to validate your .xml file. Test the validation of the .xml file by breaking each constraint in turn and report the results. Also deliberately invalidate the .xml file (but keeping it well-formed) and report the response.
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Faculty of Science
Task supported by Topic 9
Create an XSLT stylesheet file (.xsl) that supports the display of the data in a table. The data is to be displayed either in ascending postcode order or in ascending weekly rent order as requested by the user.
Task supported by Topic 10
Create new DOM documents for each of your .xml and .xsl files. Use these to generate output to the browser. Comment on the result.
Research
Access the XML DOM Tutorial at http://www.w3schools.com/dom/dom_nodes_set.asp. Under the Manipulate Nodes heading study the Get Values and Change Nodes sections. It will be important to have an understanding of the Dom Node Tree from Topic 10 prior to this study. Write your own code to show that you can both retrieve the value of the weekly rent of the first record in your XML file and change its value.
Report contents
1. Diagram of the table containing the initial data.
2. State how you checked that the XML file is well-formed.
3. What messages are sent if it is not well-formed?
4. State how you checked that the XML file is valid.
5. What messages are sent if the XML file is well-formed but not valid?
6. What messages are sent if constraints are not met by the data?
7. How is the .xsd file validated?
8. Comment on the output provided by your two DOM documents.
9. Draw a diagram showing the structure of the DOM tree associated with the .xml file, using data from any ONE record.
10. Give details of any assistance received (apart from teaching staff).
Additional task for ITECH6224 students
On the topic of What, why and how of web accessibility identify four (4), relevant, independent resources. Use these resources to discuss the topic in about 500 words. Take care to cite appropriately.
Further details
Refer to the Course Description for details of submission to Moodle, late assignments, extensions, special consideration, plagiarism, student support, presentation of academic work and adopted reference style.
Submission
All files should be zipped and uploaded to Moodle by the due date and time.
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Faculty of Science
Assignment 2 Marking Guide Term 1, 2014
Name ____________________________ ID ______________________ Marker ____________________
Criterion
Maximum
Obtained
Initial data requirements satisfied
1
.xml file
5
accurate
3
well-formed
2
.xsd file
5
validates .xml file
2
constraints implemented accurately
3
.xsl file
4
effective
2
sorting implemented correctly
2
DOM documents
4
generated correctly
2
output accurate
2
Research
8
get value
4
change value
4
Web accessibility (ITECH6224 only)
10
content
6
writing style
2
adherence to academic standards
2
Report contents
10
1 mark per section
Quality of code layout, choice of names, etc.
3
Totals
40
ITECH3224
ITECH6224
50
Final mark (correct to 1 decimal place)
20