Re: How to get the 1st element in DTDD

[Murali Mani <mani@CS.UCLA.EDU>]

Yes, doc should be initialized by an XML document, this is a wierd part of
XML, DOCTYPE declaration comes with the XML Document, and you cannot
specify DOCTYPE as part of the DTD.

Other things --
I have always *very* strongly felt that the possible root elements of a
document should be specified in the DTD/schema -- this is exactly what we
do in regular tree grammars.

RELAX supports specification of the set of possible root elements of the
document using export -- I am sure RELAX NG and TREX also have a similar
feature.... XML Schema supports this in a very wierd manner -- start with
something totally orthogonal, and use that for specifying the set of root
elements also.

People say that the schema gives the type definitions, that is right, but
finally we have to arrange the types as a tree, for which we need to
specify a set of possible root elements.

Anyways, though I have always believed that the schema should specify the
possible root types, people have always said against this, I have always
waited for one good reason for not specifying the root of the document in
the schema, but unfortunately, I do not think I have seen any... I will
keep waiting for some good reason ...

Anyways, regarding your application, I think you have to assume a
particular root element -- possibly your API might be something like --

createDocument (String name), which will then construct a document with
name as the name of the document root element, and the document will
conform to the DTD.

regards - murali.

On Fri, 22 Jun 2001 Bing.Li@asu.edu wrote:

> Dear Mani,
>
> Thanks for your help!
>
> But I think the doc should be initialized by an XML, right? Now I haven't an
> XML because I need to use DTD to generate the XML. So I can't get the doc. Do
> you think so?
>
> Thanks,
> Bing
>
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>
> On Fri, 22 Jun 2001, Murali Mani wrote:
>
> >
> > Sorry i did not use the exact names -- i have not used xml parsers from
> > March 2000 -- sorry for the imprecise answers --
> >
> > basically you have to do this --
> >
> > To get to the first element of the DTD -- I think you want to know what is
> > the element specified as the root using the DOCTYPE declaration --
> >
> > do this --
> >
> > Let the Document be doc
> >
> > (doc.getDoctype ()).getName ()
> >
> > Document.getDoctype () returns DocumentType --
> > DocumentType.getName () returns the name of the DOCTYPE declaration as a
> > String
> >
> > regards - murali.
> >
> > Note that in xml4j 1.1.16, if I remember correctly, DTD implements
> > DocumentType, also the method getDoctype is in the Document interface --
> > it is not in DTD.
> >
> > On Fri, 22 Jun 2001 Bing.Li@asu.edu wrote:
> >
> > > Dear Murali,
> > >
> > > I didn't get the method, getDocTypeDeclaration, in the DTD class. I use IBM
> > > XML Parser for Java 1.1.16. What about you?
> > >
> > > Thanks,
> > > Bing
> > >                  _________________
> > >                 |  How are you?  |_____    __
> > >                 |  I am Li Bing. |     |__|  |_________
> > >                 |________________| OK? |::|  | Need   /
> > >                 |                \.____|::|__| Help? <
> > >                 |                      \::/  \._______\
> > >    /\**/\       |   ___________________________________
> > >   ( o_o  )_     |__|http://www.public.asu.edu/~libing /
> > >    (u--u   \_)  |  |bing.li@asu.edu, 480-829-8492(H) /
> > >     (||___   )==\  |480-965-9038(L)480-965-1746(O)   \
> > >   ,dP"/b/=( /P"/b\ |__________________________________\
> > >   |8 || 8\=== || 8
> > >   `b,  ,P  `b,  ,P
> > >     """`     """`
> > >
> > >
> > > On Fri, 22 Jun 2001, Murali Mani wrote:
> > >
> > > > > I think there is something like getDocTypeDeclaration in the
> > > interface > Document -- please check.. > > cheers - murali. > > On
> > > Fri, 22 Jun 2001 Bing.Li@asu.edu wrote: > > > Dear all, > > > > Now I
> > > am using DOM to generate XML files. I need to get the first
> > element of
> > > > > DTD.
> > > > >
> > > > > I am able to use
> > > > >
> > > > > Enumeration en = dtd.getElementDeclarations();
> > > > >
> > > > > to get all the elements in the DTD. But I don't know which one is the first
> > > > > element in the DTD.
> > > > >
> > > > > I appreciate any help from you!
> > > > >
> > > > > Li Bing
> > > > >
> > > > >                  _________________
> > > > >                 |  How are you?  |_____    __
> > > > >                 |  I am Li Bing. |     |__|  |_________
> > > > >                 |________________| OK? |::|  | Need   /
> > > > >                 |                \.____|::|__| Help? <
> > > > >                 |                      \::/  \._______\
> > > > >    /\**/\       |   ___________________________________
> > > > >   ( o_o  )_     |__|http://www.public.asu.edu/~libing /
> > > > >    (u--u   \_)  |  |bing.li@asu.edu, 480-829-8492(H) /
> > > > >     (||___   )==\  |480-965-9038(L)480-965-1746(O)   \
> > > > >   ,dP"/b/=( /P"/b\ |__________________________________\
> > > > >   |8 || 8\=== || 8
> > > > >   `b,  ,P  `b,  ,P
> > > > >     """`     """`
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
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