MXML is an

XML Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup language and file format for storing, transmitting, and reconstructing data. It defines a set of rules for encoding electronic document, documents in a format that is both human-readable and Machine-r ...

-based

user interface markup language A user interface markup language is a markup language that renders and describes graphical user interfaces and controls. Many of these markup languages are dialects of XML and are dependent upon a pre-existing scripting language engine, usually a ...

first introduced by

Macromedia Macromedia, Inc. was an American graphics, multimedia, and web development software company headquartered in San Francisco, California, that made products such as Adobe Flash, Flash and Adobe Dreamweaver, Dreamweaver. It was purchased by its riv ...

in March 2004. Application developers use MXML in combination with

ActionScript ActionScript is an object-oriented programming language originally developed by Macromedia Inc. (later acquired by Adobe). It is influenced by HyperTalk, the scripting language for HyperCard. It is now an implementation of ECMAScript (mean ...

to develop rich web applications, with products such as

Apache Flex Apache Flex, formerly Adobe Flex, is a software development kit (SDK) for the development and deployment of cross-platform rich web applications based on the Adobe Flash platform. Initially developed by Macromedia and then acquired by Adobe System ...

Adobe Systems Adobe Inc. ( ), formerly Adobe Systems Incorporated, is an American software, computer software company based in San Jose, California. It offers a wide range of programs from web design tools, photo manipulation and vector creation, through to ...

, which acquired Macromedia in December 2005, gives no official meaning for the acronym MXML. Some developers suggest it should stand for "Magic eXtensible Markup Language" (which is a

backronym A backronym is an acronym formed from an already existing word by expanding its letters into the words of a phrase. Backronyms may be invented with either serious or humorous intent, or they may be a type of false etymology or folk etymology. The ...

). It is likely that the name comes from the MX suffix given to Macromedia Studio products released in 2002 and 2004, or simply "Macromedia eXtensible Markup Language". MXML is used mainly to declaratively lay out the interface of applications and can also be used to implement business logic and internet application behaviors. It can contain chunks of ActionScript code, either when creating the body of an event handler function, or with data binding where the curly braces ({) syntax is used. MXML is often used with Flex Server, which dynamically compiles it into standard binary SWF files. However, the Adobe Flash Builder IDE (formerly Adobe Flex Builder) and free Flex SDK can also compile MXML into SWF files without the use of a Flex Server. There is also a PHP

PEAR Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in late summer into mid-autumn. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosaceae, bearing the Pome, po ...

package calle
XML_MXML
which is a framework to build Adobe Flex applications. MXML is considered a proprietary standard due to its tight integration with Adobe technologies. It is like XAML in this respect. No published translators exist for converting an MXML document to another user interface language such as

UIML UIML (User Interface Markup Language) is an XML-based markup language used to define user interfaces on computers. The primary purpose of UIML is to streamline the process of developing user interfaces, enabling programmers to describe their inter ...

, XUL,

XForms XForms is an XML format used for collecting inputs from web forms. XForms was designed to be the next generation of HTML / XHTML forms, but is generic enough that it can also be used in a standalone manner or with presentation languages other tha ...

, XAML, or SVG. However, there do exist third party vendor plugins for Flex Builder that are capable of generating a result other than a SWF file from Flex applications, for instance native mobile applications.

Example source code

A Hello World example: 000011, #333333>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mxml User interface markup languages Declarative programming languages XML-based standards Vector graphics markup languages Adobe Flex Declarative markup languages