XBRL

XML (eXtensible Markup Language), with wide-ranging applications in business and other applications, is hailed as a revolutionary advance in data transfer and information identification on the Internet. This tutorial explores XML applications in business transactions and then focuses on XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language). XBRL is an application of XML in financial reporting. XBRL uses accepted financial reporting standards, and allows automatic exchange and reliable extraction of financial statements across all software and technologies. XBRL includes a well-defined dictionary of markups and is supported by many supplementary technologies. This tutorial explores the following aspects of XBRL: markups, documents and schemas; transformation and processing technologies that support XBRL; tools and software that enable real-world implementation of the language; and audit and control issues associated with XBRL.