LESSON 17
432
Authoring XML
Another resource provided with the program disk, is the directory entitled
OnlineManuals
.
Be sure to explore the contents of that directory for helpful information about XML and
structure.
Creating an application
To set up an XML application, you need to identify the locations of all its necessary files
and define its properties and preferences. This is called “creating an application” and is
accomplished using a specific type of FrameMaker file with the name of structapps.fm.
To create a structured XML application, you edit the structapps.fm file.
The EDD (Element Definition Document) controls use of the elements and establishes
the architecture of the final file, describing interpretation of fonts, formats, tables, and
graphics. It is like a flowchart, outline, or schema but is expressed in Structured
FrameMaker 7.0 definitions, using elements as its components.
To create and edit in Structured FrameMaker 7.0, use the Structure View to navigate and
manage your document, and draw from the Element Catalog when inserting, changing,
or moving elements.
When an element does not conform to the rules, Structure View identifies the error in red;
it can be a missing, undefined, or misplaced element. A file that does not conform to the
rules will not validate; then it will not export into XML.
XML uses tags. Tags indicate data content, not style. Formatting is handled separately in
the Read/Write Rules. XML documents have to follow rules. XML separates data from
style and content. In this way, a document can be interpreted with any one or a
combination of these building blocks for multiple purposes. For instance, the data can be
extracted or analyzed without changing the style or the content.
For more information about structure, elements, rules and definition files,
structured applications, stylesheets, and other essentials of authoring valid XML
documents, see “Getting Started with Structure” on page 399 of this book and Chapter
3,
“Working with Structured Documents,
”
in the
Adobe FrameMaker 7.0 User Guide.
L17.fm Page 432 Saturday, July 6, 2002 4:37 PM
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