Creating NSMutableArray from xml file - iphone

Question

I have an xml file with the following information.
<?xml version="1.0"?>
-<Party>
-<Player>
<Name>Butch</Name>
<Level>1</Level>
<Class>Fighter</Class>
</Player>
-<Player>
<Name>Shadow</Name>
<Level>2</Level>
<Class>Rogue</Class>
</Player>
-<Player>
<Name>Crak</Name>
<Level>3</Level>
<Class>Wizard</Class>
</Player>
</Party>
I try to add this to an NSMutableArray by doing the following.
NSString *filePath = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Party" ofType:#"xml"];
NSData *xmlData = [[NSMutableArray alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:filePAth];
When I run this, my array object has no data in it.
If I replace the line with;
NSdata *xmlData = [NSdata dataWithContentsOfFole:filePath];
it will load my data but it is not in the format I require.
I'm very new to Objective-c and iPhone development and any help will be greatly appreciated.
If anymore info is needed I'll be happy to provide it.
edit - I'm using GDataXML to parse my xml
edit - My Parser class is as follows
#implementation PartyParser
+(NSString *)dataFilePath:(BOOL)forSave{
return [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Party" ofType:#"xml"];
}
+(Party *)loadParty{
NSString *filePath = [self dataFilePath:FALSE];
//NSData *xmlData = [NSData dataWithContentsOfFile:filePath];
NSData *xmlData = [[NSMutableArray alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:filePath];
NSError *error;
GDataXMLDocument *doc = [[GDataXMLDocument alloc] initWithData:xmlData options:0 error:&error];
if(doc ==nil){return nil;}
NSLog(#"%#", doc.rootElement);
Party *party = [[[Party alloc] init] autorelease];
NSArray *partyMembers = [doc.rootElement elementsForName:#"Player"];
for (GDataXMLElement *partyMember in partyMembers)
{
NSString *name;
int level;
RPGClass rpgClass;
//Name
NSArray *names = [partyMember elementsForName:#"name"];
if(names.count > 0)
{
GDataXMLElement *firstName = (GDataXMLElement *) [names objectAtIndex:0];
name = firstName.stringValue;
}else continue;
//Level
NSArray *levels = [partyMember elementsForName:#"level"];
if(levels.count > 0)
{
GDataXMLElement *firstLevel = (GDataXMLElement *) [levels objectAtIndex:0];
level = firstLevel.stringValue.intValue;
}else continue;
//Class
NSArray *classes = [partyMember elementsForName:#"class"];
if(classes.count > 0)
{
GDataXMLElement *firstClass = (GDataXMLElement *) [classes objectAtIndex:0];
if([firstClass.stringValue caseInsensitiveCompare:#"fighter"] == NSOrderedSame)
{
rpgClass = RPGClassFighter;
}
else if([firstClass.stringValue caseInsensitiveCompare:#"rogue"] == NSOrderedSame)
{
rpgClass = RPGClassRogue;
}
else if([firstClass.stringValue caseInsensitiveCompare:#"wizard"] == NSOrderedSame)
{
rpgClass = RPGClassWizard;
}
else
{
continue;
}
}else continue;
Player *player = [[[Player alloc] initWithName:name level:level rpgClass:rpgClass] autorelease];
[party.players addObject:player];
}
//NSLog(#"%#", doc.rootElement);
//
[doc release];
[xmlData release];
return party;
}
#end

Answer 1

The XML file can not be any type of XML. It needs to be in the "property list" format.
Take a look at some Apple docs or some of the .plist files that will be in your project. That will show you how to create such a file.
Alternatively, create one using the "PList Editor" application that comes with the developer tools. It has a good UI for creating these files.
Lastly, your line "NSData* xmlData = ..." is very wrong - you're assigning a mutable array object to an NSData* variable. The types are not interchangeable by a long shot.
If you want to do full-blown XML parsing, there are various options that deserve a topic of their own. The XML used for plists is limited to Cocoa collections and simple data types.

Answer 2

Take a look to this XML Parser. It is called "TBXML", I have used that for a while and I'm quite happy with the result.
http://www.tbxml.co.uk/TBXML/TBXML_Free.html

Answer 3

Just place your XML file (e.g. "myFileName.xml") anywhere in your project.
Read the xml file contents to NSData using:
NSString *myBundleString = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"myFileName" ofType:#"xml"];
NSData *myData = [NSData dataWithContentsOfFile:myBundleString];
And parse your data using NSXMLParser:
NSXMLParser *myParser = [[NSXMLParser alloc] initWithData:myData];
[myParser setDelegate:self];
[myParser parse];
Happy parsing using the delegate methods!