XML DTDs: The complete course

Abstract

Detailed technical instruction in reading and writing XML DTDs. It provides attendees with a solid understanding of the components of XML DTDs. Emphasis is on the core features: element and attribute declarations, parameter entities. Some advanced features such as conditional sections and namespaces are also covered.

Duration

1-2 days

Schedule

To schedule a class, please contact us at pwalmsley@datypic.com.

Topics covered

  1. DTDs: An overview
    • Purpose
    • Internal vs. external DTDs
    • Relating instances to DTDs
    • Validation with DTDs
    • DTDs vs. other schema languages
  2. Element type declarations
    • Content models
      • Sequences
      • Choices
    • Mixed content
    • Any content
    • Empty content
  3. Attribute list declarations
    • Design consideration: elements vs. attributes
    • Attribute-list declaration syntax
    • Attribute types
      • CDATA
      • Enumerated types
      • ID, IDREF and IDREFS
      • NMTOKEN and NMTOKENS
      • ENTITY and ENTITIES
    • Occurrence types
    • Default values
    • Fixed values
  4. Entity declarations
    • Internal
    • External
    • Parsed and unparsed general entities
    • Parameter entities
    • Using parameter entities for better DTD design
  5. Conditional sections
    • Include/ignore section syntax
    • Using conditional sections and entities to create more flexible DTDs
  6. DTDs and namespaces