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Extending Informix®
Beyond standard relational database objects, HCL Informix® can be extended to handle specialized data types, access methods, routines, and other objects. Informix includes many built-in extensions that are fully integrated in the database server. Informix also provides DataBlade® modules, which are packages of extended database objects for a particular purpose and that are installed separately from the database server. Alternatively, you can create your own user-defined objects for Informix.
Informix® extensions and DataBlade® modules
These topics describe how to use built-in database extensions and separately installed DataBlade® modules.
Performing XML Publishing
The Informix® XML User's Guide includes information about using built-in functions for XML publishing with Informix.

Extending Informix®
Beyond standard relational database objects, HCL Informix® can be extended to handle specialized data types, access methods, routines, and other objects. Informix includes many built-in extensions that are fully integrated in the database server. Informix also provides DataBlade® modules, which are packages of extended database objects for a particular purpose and that are installed separately from the database server. Alternatively, you can create your own user-defined objects for Informix.
- Informix® extensions and DataBlade® modules
  These topics describe how to use built-in database extensions and separately installed DataBlade® modules.
  - Database Extensions User's Guide
    The Informix® Database Extensions User's Guide explains how to use the database extensions that come with HCL Informix: Large Object Locator, MQ messaging, binary data types, basic text search, node data type, and SQL packages.
  - Performing XML Publishing
    The Informix® XML User's Guide includes information about using built-in functions for XML publishing with Informix.
    - Publishing SQL result sets in XML
      Several functions let you publish XML from SQL queries.
    - Transforming documents with XSLT functions
      Apply XSL stylesheets and transforms to XML documents.
  - Spatiotemporal Search for Moving Objects User's Guide
    The describes how to program applications to search data from moving objects in HCL Informix® databases using the spatiotemporal search extension.
  - TimeSeries Data User's Guide
    The Informix® TimeSeries Data User's Guide contains information to assist you in using the TimeSeries extension with HCL Informix.
  - Web DataBlade Module
    Use the Web DataBlade® module to create web applications that incorporate data that is retrieved dynamically from the HCL Informix® database.
- Creating extensions
  You can create user-defined data types, routines, access methods, and other database objects to suit your needs. You can use application programming interfaces to write user-defined routines and applications that access data in Informix® databases.

Performing XML Publishing

The Informix® XML User's Guide includes information about using built-in functions for XML publishing with Informix®.

You should be familiar with the Informix® Guide to SQL: Syntax, which contains all the syntax descriptions for SQL and stored procedure language (SPL). The Informix® Guide to SQL: Tutorial shows how to use basic and advanced SQL and SPL routines to access and manipulate the data in your databases. The Informix® Database Design and Implementation Guide shows how to use SQL to implement and manage your databases.

See the documentation notes files for a list of the publications in the documentation set of your Informix® database server.

This publication is written for the following users:

Database users
Database administrators
Database server administrators
Database-application programmers

This publication assumes that you have the following background:

A working knowledge of your computer, your operating system, and the utilities that your operating system provides
Some experience working with relational databases or exposure to database concepts
Some experience with computer programming and XML
Some experience with database server administration, operating-system administration, or network administration