An XML playlist is a text-based XML file that contains information about each file you would like to present in the player. An XML playlist is used to populate the list of tracks within Rave, which means that no special server-side functionality is required.
Minimize server load.
XML playlists are files, hence, no server-side processing is required.
Run Rave on a CD, DVD or Hard Drive.
Again, an XML playlist is just a file, the data within the playlist can be set up to use relative paths.
Run Wimpy on servers that don't support PHP, ASP or ColdFusion.
Although most servers have either PHP, ASP or ColdFusion, some servers do not, or server administrators limit the functionality of these programs.
Customize the order in which items appear in the list.
Since the "Automatic Playlist" option reads the contents of folders using an alphabetic list, sometimes files are not in the preferred order. Using an XML playlist allows you to organize the display order.
Customize the Artist, Title, Image, Description and Links.
An XML playlist allows you to include much more information about each track.