Revision as of 21:12, 30 July 2005 editDavidCary (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users7,117 edits +External Data Representation← Previous edit | Revision as of 08:08, 3 March 2006 edit undoBovineone (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers15,303 edits copyedit. add more section dividers. add categoriesNext edit → | ||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
SDXF stands for "Structured Data eXchange Format". | '''SDXF''' stands for "Structured Data eXchange Format", and was published as Internet RFC 3072. | ||
⚫ | It allows arbitrary structured data of different types to be assembled together for exchanging between computers of different architectures. | ||
This Format is also published as an Internet RFC (see http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3072.txt or for a structured hypertext format: http://www.zvon.org/tmRFC/RFC3072/Output/index.html | |||
⚫ | The ability to arbitrarily structure your data and serialize it into a self-describing format is reminiscient of ], but SDXF is not a text format (as XML)--you cannot manipulate a SDXF structure with a text editor. | ||
⚫ | |||
==Technical structure format== | |||
With SDXF you can structure your data to any level of detail. The particular data elements (called "Chunks") are self-describing. The format is very simple, but nevertheless transparent to the programmer, he does not need and should not care about the bits and bytes of the structure. To access and create the structure the programmer uses a set of functions. But "not caring" does not mean "not knowing": He must already know how SDXF works. | With SDXF you can structure your data to any level of detail. The particular data elements (called "Chunks") are self-describing. The format is very simple, but nevertheless transparent to the programmer, he does not need and should not care about the bits and bytes of the structure. To access and create the structure the programmer uses a set of functions. But "not caring" does not mean "not knowing": He must already know how SDXF works. | ||
Line 11: | Line 12: | ||
It may be that the imagining of a SDXF data structure as an administration building will be helpful: This building has a main entrance, you "enter" (this is the name of a SDXF-function) the building and you come into a corridor with some doors: behind some doors there is a bureau of a clerk, behind others there are other corridors with doors (which can also conceal corridors and doors, and so on…). On every door the name of the clerk or the indication of the corridor is to read, and: you can distinguish between a door and a corridor. So you can walk from one door to the "next" (this is another name of a SDXF-function). If you open a door of a corridor you can "enter" it, too. If you open a door of a bureau you can "extract" (yes, also a function) information from the clerk (I hope). | It may be that the imagining of a SDXF data structure as an administration building will be helpful: This building has a main entrance, you "enter" (this is the name of a SDXF-function) the building and you come into a corridor with some doors: behind some doors there is a bureau of a clerk, behind others there are other corridors with doors (which can also conceal corridors and doors, and so on…). On every door the name of the clerk or the indication of the corridor is to read, and: you can distinguish between a door and a corridor. So you can walk from one door to the "next" (this is another name of a SDXF-function). If you open a door of a corridor you can "enter" it, too. If you open a door of a bureau you can "extract" (yes, also a function) information from the clerk (I hope). | ||
Additionally to the adaptation of the data, there are two other functions which will work in the background while using the SDXF functions: | Additionally to the adaptation of the data, there are two other functions which will work in the background while using the SDXF functions: Compressing/decompressing and encryption/decryption. | ||
⚫ | You can use SDXF also as a file format, maybe as a basic for a database. | ||
Compressing/decompressing and encryption/decryption. | |||
==See also== | |||
⚫ | You can use SDXF also as a file format, maybe as a basic for a |
||
⚫ | *] | ||
==External links== | |||
⚫ | The |
||
* | |||
⚫ | ] | ||
This is the Introduction chapter of a more detailed description which can be found on http://www.pinpi.com/SDXF.htm | |||
] | |||
⚫ | |||
] | |||
⚫ | ] |
Revision as of 08:08, 3 March 2006
SDXF stands for "Structured Data eXchange Format", and was published as Internet RFC 3072.
It allows arbitrary structured data of different types to be assembled together for exchanging between computers of different architectures.
The ability to arbitrarily structure your data and serialize it into a self-describing format is reminiscient of XML, but SDXF is not a text format (as XML)--you cannot manipulate a SDXF structure with a text editor.
Technical structure format
With SDXF you can structure your data to any level of detail. The particular data elements (called "Chunks") are self-describing. The format is very simple, but nevertheless transparent to the programmer, he does not need and should not care about the bits and bytes of the structure. To access and create the structure the programmer uses a set of functions. But "not caring" does not mean "not knowing": He must already know how SDXF works.
The exchanging of data between computers of different architecture is realized by a transparent transformation of the data to a normalized (network) form. This is done by a set of SDXF-functions.
It may be that the imagining of a SDXF data structure as an administration building will be helpful: This building has a main entrance, you "enter" (this is the name of a SDXF-function) the building and you come into a corridor with some doors: behind some doors there is a bureau of a clerk, behind others there are other corridors with doors (which can also conceal corridors and doors, and so on…). On every door the name of the clerk or the indication of the corridor is to read, and: you can distinguish between a door and a corridor. So you can walk from one door to the "next" (this is another name of a SDXF-function). If you open a door of a corridor you can "enter" it, too. If you open a door of a bureau you can "extract" (yes, also a function) information from the clerk (I hope).
Additionally to the adaptation of the data, there are two other functions which will work in the background while using the SDXF functions: Compressing/decompressing and encryption/decryption.
You can use SDXF also as a file format, maybe as a basic for a database.