ObjectiveLibxml2

ObjectiveLibxml2 is a light-weight, asynchronous, streaming, event-based XML parser using Objective-C and the C library libxml2. Since only a single downloaded chunk of the XML document is in memory at a time, the ObjectiveLibxml2 static library is meant for any iPhone application that needs to download and parse XML.

A sample project is included that downloads and parses Google News RSS feeds. Each parsed item is added in real-time to the table view.

Please let me know if you find any issue with the parser! Or better yet, fork it and push the changes yourself.

This project used Apple's sample project TopSongs as a starting point. ObjectiveLibxml2, however, decouples the parsing from the model, letting your delegate determine how to interpret the data.

Adding ObjectiveLibxml2 to your project

ObjectiveLibxml2 is compiled as a static library, and the easiest way to add it to your project is to use Xcode's "dependent project" facilities. Here is how:

1. Clone the ObjectiveLibxml2 git repository: git clone git://github.com/baalexander/ObjectiveLibxml2.git. Make sure you store the repository in a permanent place because Xcode will need to reference the files every time you compile your project. Another option is to add the library as a submodule to your current git project.

2. Locate the "ObjectiveLibxml2.xcodeproj" file under "ObjectiveLibxml2/src". Drag ObjectiveLibxml2.xcodeproj and drop it onto the root of your Xcode project's "Groups and Files" sidebar. Alternatively, press Cmd + Opt + A. A dialog will appear -- make sure "Copy items" is unchecked and "Reference Type" is "Relative to Project" before clicking "Add".

3. Now you need to link the ObjectiveLibxml2 static library to your project. Click the "ObjectiveLibxml2.xcodeproj" item that has just been added to the sidebar. Under the "Details" table, you will see a single item: libObjectiveLibxml2.a. Check the checkbox on the far right of libObjectiveLibxml2.a.

4. Now you need to add ObjectiveLibxml2 as a dependency of your project, so Xcode compiles it whenever you compile your project. Expand the "Targets" section of the sidebar and double-click your application's target. Under the "General" tab you will see a "Direct Dependencies" section. Click the "+" button, select "ObjectiveLibxml2", and click "Add Target".

5. Now you need to add the libxml2 library to your project. Right click on the "Frameworks" group in your project (or equivalent) and select Add > Existing Frameworks. Then locate libxml2.dylib and add it to the project.

6. We need to tell your project where to find the ObjectiveLibxml2 headers. Open your "Project Settings" and go to the "Build" tab. Look for "Header Search Paths" and double-click it. Add the relative path from your project's directory to the "ObjectiveLibxml2/src" directory.

7. We also need to add to "Header Search Paths" the paths for the libxml2 library. Add the path "/usr/include/libxml2/**".

8. You're ready to go. Just #import <ObjectiveLibxml2/ObjectiveLibxml2.h> anywhere you want to use XML parser classes in your project.

Be sure to make these changes to all the appropriate configurations, including Debug AND Distribution. I highly recommend testing as an Ad Hoc distribution before distributing when dealing with static libraries. I've been burned once.

The installation instructions were derived from the excellent Three20 project.

License

This project is released under the MIT license. See the LICENSE file included in the project for more details.