ECMAScript for XML

ECMAScript for XML (E4X) was an extension to <a href="/facts/ECMAScript/M7nDHsB5">ECMAScript</a> (which includes <a href="/facts/ActionScript/xtDQb0wR">ActionScript</a>, <a href="/facts/JavaScript/XhhIIEsl">JavaScript</a>, and <a href="/facts/JScript/HyuCUU2D">JScript</a>) to add native support for <a href="/facts/XML/clNgUfWk">XML</a>. The goal was to provide a simpler alternative to the <a href="/facts/Document_Object_Model/GglE6jGx">DOM</a> interface for accessing XML documents. E4X added XML as a <a href="/facts/Primitive_(computer_science)/0c898228">primitive</a> data structure to allow for faster access and better support within the language.
E4X was standardized by <a href="/facts/Ecma_International/HCbnIU6n">Ecma International</a> in the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20131104082608/http://www.ecma-international.org/publications/standards/Ecma-357.htm">ECMA-357 standard</a>. The first edition was published in June 2004 and the second edition in December 2005. However, the E4X standard was deprecated by the Mozilla Foundation in 2014, and it was withdrawn by ISO/IEC in 2021.
The first implementation of E4X was designed by Terry Lucas and John Schneider and appeared in <a href="/facts/BEA_Systems/3erv9RPV">BEA</a>'s Weblogic Workshop 7.0, released in February 2002. BEA's implementation was based on <a href="/facts/Rhino_(JavaScript_engine)/yNRIqPeo">Rhino</a> and released before the ECMAScript E4X spec was completed in June 2004.

ECMAScript for XML open-in-new

ECMAScript for XML