Zebra - User's Guide and Reference
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# Example 1: XML Indexing And Searching

This example shows how Zebra can be used with absolutely minimal configuration to index a body of XML documents, and search them using XPath expressions to specify access points.

Go to the `examples/zthes` subdirectory of the distribution archive. There you will find a `Makefile` that will populate the `records` subdirectory with a file of Zthes records representing a taxonomic hierarchy of dinosaurs. (The records are generated from the family tree in the file `dino.tree`.) Type `make records/dino.xml` to make the XML data file. (Or you could just type `make dino` to build the XML data file, create the database and populate it with the taxonomic records all in one shot - but then you wouldn't learn anything, would you? :-)

Now we need to create a Zebra database to hold and index the XML records. We do this with the Zebra indexer, `zebraidx`, which is driven by the `zebra.cfg` configuration file. For our purposes, we don't need any special behaviour - we can use the defaults - so we can start with a minimal file that just tells `zebraidx` where to find the default indexing rules, and how to parse the records:

        profilePath: .:../../tab
        recordType: grs.sgml

That's all you need for a minimal Zebra configuration. Now you can roll the XML records into the database and build the indexes:

        zebraidx update records

Now start the server. Like the indexer, its behaviour is controlled by the `zebra.cfg` file; and like the indexer, it works just fine with this minimal configuration.

    	zebrasrv

By default, the server listens on IP port number 9999, although this can easily be changed - see the Section called Running the Z39.50 Server (zebrasrv) in Chapter 7.

Now you can use the Z39.50 client program of your choice to execute XPath-based boolean queries and fetch the XML records that satisfy them:

        $ yaz-client @:9999
        Connecting...Ok.
        Z> find @attr 1=/Zthes/termName Sauroposeidon
        Number of hits: 1
        Z> format xml
        Z> show 1
        <Zthes>
         <termId>22</termId>
         <termName>Sauroposeidon</termName>
         <termType>PT</termType>
         <termNote>The tallest known dinosaur (18m)</termNote>
         <relation>
          <relationType>BT</relationType>
          <termId>21</termId>
          <termName>Brachiosauridae</termName>
          <termType>PT</termType>
         </relation>

          <idzebra xmlns="http://www.indexdata.dk/zebra/">
    	<size>300</size>
    	<localnumber>23</localnumber>
    	<filename>records/dino.xml</filename>
          </idzebra>
        </Zthes>

Now wasn't that nice and easy?

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