The so-called identity template that copies everything from input.xml to output.xml, element for element, attribute for attribute, is the most important of all templates in combination with templates of exceptions.
XML is text and yet more than just text -- sometimes you want to work with just the content rather than the tags and other markup. In this tip, Uche Ogbuji demonstrates simple techniques for counting the words in XML content using XSLT with or without additional tools.