Under the push parsing approach, a push parser generates synchronous events as a document is parsed, and these events can be processed by an application using a callback handler model
This is the text given in the book Pro XML Development with Java about SAX 2.0.
As for StAX, the book says:
Under the pull approach, events are pulled from an XML document under the control of the application using the parser.
I want to ask, what is the meaning of the highlighted text ? An answer befitting a beginner is appreciated :)
Basically, a push is when the parser says to some handler, "I have a foo, do something with it." A pull is when the handler says to the parser, "give me the next foo."
Push:
if (myChar == '(')
handler.handleOpenParen(); // push the open paren to the handler
Pull:
Token token = parser.next(); // pull the next token from the parser