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Declaration vs definition


Question posted by: caferias (Guest) on July 19th, 2006 03:55 PM
Hello, I'm curious about the difference between the term "declaration"
and "definition" in the context of XML. Where is the difference?

Greetings: Fernando

8 Answers Posted
Joe Kesselman's Avatar
Joe Kesselman July 19th, 2006 04:55 PM
Guest - n/a Posts
#2: Re: Declaration vs definition

caferias wrote:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Hello, I'm curious about the difference between the term "declaration"
and "definition" in the context of XML. Where is the difference?


Where, in specific?
Philippe Poulard's Avatar
Philippe Poulard July 19th, 2006 05:05 PM
Guest - n/a Posts
#3: Re: Declaration vs definition

caferias wrote:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Hello, I'm curious about the difference between the term "declaration"
and "definition" in the context of XML. Where is the difference?


they both start with "de" and end with "tion" ; the other characters are
the difference (notice that in the context of XML the case matters)

:)

--
Cordialement,

///
(. .)
--------ooO--(_)--Ooo--------
| Philippe Poulard |
-----------------------------
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Have the RefleX !
Alain Frisch's Avatar
Guest - n/a Posts
#4: Re: Declaration vs definition

"caferias" , dans le message (comp.text.xml:74580), a écrit :
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Hello, I'm curious about the difference between the term "declaration"
and "definition" in the context of XML. Where is the difference?


My understanding is that a "declaration" creates a fresh object
and binds it to a name, whereas a "definition" only binds an existing
object to a name. In particular, two definitions with the same content
denote equivalent things, whereas two declarations with the same
content create different things. A definition is just about
naming things; a declaration is generative.

-- Alain
Joe Kesselman's Avatar
Joe Kesselman July 19th, 2006 06:45 PM
Guest - n/a Posts
#5: Re: Declaration vs definition

Alain Frisch wrote:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
My understanding is that a "declaration" creates a fresh object
and binds it to a name, whereas a "definition" only binds an existing
object to a name. In particular, two definitions with the same content
denote equivalent things, whereas two declarations with the same
content create different things. A definition is just about
naming things; a declaration is generative.


That's the convention in many programming-language contexts.

To know how this applies to XML, though, we'd have to see the context in
which it was used.
Johannes Koch's Avatar
Johannes Koch July 19th, 2006 10:55 PM
Guest - n/a Posts
#6: Re: Declaration vs definition

[declaration and definition in XML]

Joe Kesselman wrote:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
To know how this applies to XML, though, we'd have to see the context in
which it was used.


When I first read the OP's post I thought of document type declaration
and document type definition.
--
Johannes Koch
Spem in alium nunquam habui praeter in te, Deus Israel.
(Thomas Tallis, 40-part motet)
Joe Kesselman's Avatar
Joe Kesselman July 20th, 2006 04:05 AM
Guest - n/a Posts
#7: Re: Declaration vs definition

Johannes Koch wrote:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
When I first read the OP's post I thought of document type declaration
and document type definition.


.... Perhaps. If so:

"[Definition:] The XML document type declaration contains or points to
markup declarations that provide a grammar for a class of documents.
This grammar is known as a document type definition, or DTD. The
document type declaration can point to an external subset (a special
kind of external entity) containing markup declarations, or can contain
the markup declarations directly in an internal subset, or can do both.
The DTD for a document consists of both subsets taken together."

As I read that, the Document Type Declaration is production 28 in the
XML grammar (doctypedecl), whereas the Document Type Definition is
specifically that portion of the declaration which is described by
production 29 (markupdecl).

But I've never seen anyone use the term "document type declaration"
outside this specification. It's generally just called "the doctype", or
"the DTD" (though officially, DTD refers only to the definition).

Does that help?

--
() ASCII Ribbon Campaign | Joe Kesselman
/\ Stamp out HTML e-mail! | System architexture and kinetic poetry
Johannes Koch's Avatar
Johannes Koch July 20th, 2006 08:35 AM
Guest - n/a Posts
#8: Re: Declaration vs definition

Joe Kesselman wrote:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
But I've never seen anyone use the term "document type declaration"
outside this specification.


I use this term quite frequently :-)
--
Johannes Koch
In te domine speravi; non confundar in aeternum.
(Te Deum, 4th cent.)
Alain Frisch's Avatar
Guest - n/a Posts
#9: Re: Declaration vs definition

Johannes Koch , dans le message (comp.text.xml:74592), a écrit :
Quote:
Originally Posted by
When I first read the OP's post I thought of document type declaration
and document type definition.


As for me, I thought of the XML Schema spec, with element and attribute
declarations, but type and group definitions.
 
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