extensibility

Creating and Editing XSDL Schemas in XML Authority


XML Schema Definition Language (XSDL), also known as XML Schema, is under development by the W3C Schema Working Group.  Designed to be a sophisticated schema dialect well suited for data interchange applications, XSDL supports namespaces, inheritance, and an extensible data-typing system which allows users to define and use their own data types. XML Authority, supporting the April 7, 2000 Working Draft, provides an up-to-date view of XSDL to help you consider a future transition to XSDL.  Be aware, however, that XSDL is not yet stable, and changes are likely before it is considered complete by the W3C.  

NOTE:  When opening an existing XSDL file created with earlier versions of XML Authority (supporting earlier XSDL Working Drafts), a dialogue box will appear to inform you that XML Authority will convert the file to conform to the syntax outlined by the April 7 Working Draft.   In making the conversion, XML Authority does not make changes to the original file but generates an updated file (Untitled.xsd).

XML Authority provides complete support for both basic tasks like defining element and attribute types and for more sophisticated things like setting local tag names and specifying how many times a given element may occur. While most XSDL development uses the exact same tools as the rest of XML Authority's schema development, a few additional tools specific to XSDL development are available.

The "Add Module" function of the Overview Pane allows you to include externally defined XSDL schemas in you current schema.  A namespace can also be referenced via the Overview Pane or through the Namespace Tab of the Advanced Pane.  You can enter a namespace for your schema through the Info option on the File Menu

XML Authority also supports local tags and XSDL occurs attributes, using the Qlickers shown below in Figure A.

SOX Qlickers

Figure A - Local Tag (=) Qlickers for use with XSDL

SOX Qlickers

Figure B - Set Occurs ({ }) Qlickers for use with XSDL

These Qlickers will appear when the cursor is in the content model field for an element or in the content model editor (Figure A and Figure B). The equals sign (=) allows you to set a local tag for the current element, while the curly braces ({}) allow you to set more precise occurrence indicators for elements and groups of elements.

XSDL users also have the capability to create their own data types through the Data Type Tab of the Advanced Pane

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