XPath Visualizer

Although it may seem as fun and games to build fully functional application or keep a website up and running, it's actually one of the most meticulous tasks out there. This is because programming languages require a great deal of attention, with a single misplaced character spelling disaster.

Web pages, for instance, need an abundance of commands and queries to keep track of traffic, data packets distribution and more. Dedicated to what the name suggests, XPath Visualizer gives you the possibility to open XML files to analyze associated nodes.

The first time you run the application it may seem like there's nothing to it. A compact interface pops up, with an input field for the XPath expression and the rest of the space completely blank. A note of advice, everything is hidden in the menu bar that, oddly enough, is not visible by default. This forces you to make constant use of the ALT key so that file and edit menus become accessible.

From here on everything runs smooth, well sort of. In terms of supported files, you can only import XML files, so you better make sure they are at hand. There's an option that targets a specific URL which might come in handy to analyze your active projects from a distance.

On the other hand, it can take some time to fully load a local file in case it's packed with too many lines of code. This gets frustrating, especially because moving to other tabs can result in a faulty detection process.

You need to know what you're looking for and write down expressions in the dedicated field. Fetched results are highlighted in the preview section for easy identification. You can add namespaces and prefixes as filters for more search options.

The preview area is fully interactive and you can even write down custom lines of code. Syntax highlighting is implemented, as well as line numbering for an enhanced experience. There's even an error detection system that points out to the faulty line, as well as an option to export your projects under the XML format.

To sum it up, we thought we could get a little more out of XPath Visualizer, but our expectations were quickly crushed because of poor design and implementation of features. Sure, it's lightweight, available in a portable edition and supports editing on the spot, but the overall process of figuring it out, waiting for code to load and shallow set of features keep it far from being a pro.