Quote:Original post by Zahlman
Don't ask "What is X and how can I use it?" Ask "What things exist that can help me do Y?" Trust me, in the long run there will be much less pain.
I like this advice!
On topic: one thing XML is used for is to make it a bit more easy for games to be moddable. In civilization 4 for example, you can change all kinds of things from unit statistics to interface to the in-game text in XML. Being in text form, this makes it easier for modders to understand and use.
This article on gamedev is about that, the following snippet from it is very clear:
<invadersgame> <level> <!-- here's where we declare the aliens --> <alien xpos="0" ypos="100" color="red" points="10" /> <alien xpos="100" ypos="100" color="green" points="10" /> <alien xpos="200" ypos="100" color="blue" points="10" /> </level></invadersgame>