📚 Knowledge base · Software Development Technologies
Data Formats & Encoding
JSON, XML, Base64, UUIDs and Unix timestamps - the formats every developer reads and writes.
Guides
Full walkthroughs with setup steps, config files and copy-pasteable commands.
What is JSON?
JSON's six data types and strict syntax rules, the errors that stop it parsing, how it compares with XML and YAML, and how to parse it in JavaScript, C# and Python.
Read the guide · 8 min →What is XML?
How XML documents are built from elements, attributes and namespaces, what well-formed and valid mean, where XML is still used, and how to query and parse it safely.
Read the guide · 8 min →What is Base64?
How Base64 turns every 3 bytes into 4 text characters, where padding and the ~33% overhead come from, how Base64URL differs, and why it is encoding, not encryption.
Read the guide · 7 min →What is a UUID?
What the 8-4-4-4-12 format means, how UUID versions 1 to 8 differ, the real odds of a v4 collision, and why v7 makes a better database key.
Read the guide · 7 min →What is a Unix timestamp?
What epoch time counts, how to tell seconds from milliseconds, how time zones and ISO 8601 relate to it, the Year 2038 problem, and conversions in every common language.
Read the guide · 7 min →