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Re: Back to basics: a few questions about colons in XMLnames

• From: Amelia A Lewis <amyzing@talsever.com>
• To: xml-dev@lists.xml.org
• Date: Mon, 8 Nov 2010 15:55:58 -0500

Errrrrrrr ...

On Mon, 8 Nov 2010 20:26:17 +0000, Stephen Green wrote:
> How about several colons being allowed in an element name?
> The XML spec seems to permit it as XML but is it expressly
> disallowed for namespaces?

The XML specification reserves colon.  So it can't be used in a name, 
unless another specification on top of XML permits that usage.

The only specification that permits the usage of colon in an XML name 
is the namespaces recommendation, which uses the colon, in the xmlns 
"attribute" (namespace declaration) to define the bound prefix 
(xmlns:prefix="uri"), and in qualified names to separate prefix from 
name (prefix:name).

So: a parser that does not support namespaces in XML *should* (if it 
supports XML) mark an otherwise well-formed XML document as ill-formed 
if it encounters a (or any number of) colon(s) in an element or 
attribute name; a parser that does support namespaces should be keeping 
track of declarations and must recognize a namespace-ill-formed 
document as such.

Amy!
-- 
Amelia A. Lewis                    amyzing {at} talsever.com
I know you don't want either to give or to take.  You've tried being
the giver, and you've found that the giver is always fooled.  And you
won't be the taker, because that's very difficult, and because you know
that the taker always ends by hating the giver.  You don't want ever
again to have to depend for happiness on another person.
                -- Lord Peter Wimsey

• Follow-Ups:
  • Re: Back to basics: a few questions about colons in XMLnames
    • From: Michael Kay <mike@saxonica.com>

• References:
  • Back to basics: a few questions about colons in XML names
    • From: "Costello, Roger L." <costello@mitre.org>
  • Re: Back to basics: a few questions about colons in XMLnames
    • From: Evan Lenz <evan@evanlenz.net>
  • Re: Back to basics: a few questions about colons in XML names
    • From: Stephen Green <stephengreenubl@gmail.com>