Microsoft XML - XML Schema - A hole in my understanding related to Office 2003 word.

Author

XML Schema - A hole in my understanding related to Office 2003 word.

David Taylor

2004-05-21, 9:29 am

I think I must have a hole in my understanding of XML Schema or a
misunderstanding which I would be gratefull if someone could help complete
or correct.

As I understand it a schema completely ties down whether an XML instance is
valid or not. However I know that it is possible to extend an Office 2003
word document with my own XML. What I don't understand is how this can be!

Is there some attribute like mixed (but obviously not actually mixed) which
enables this to happen, or does the use of another namespace mean I can put
what I like where I like?

Is there some way of writing a schema which enables me to define where
within an Office 2003 word document it's valid for elements from my
namespace to appear?

Also can I add attributes from my namespace to Office 2003 word elements?

Mary McRae

2004-05-21, 7:31 pm

Hi David,

>As I understand it a schema completely ties down whether an XML instance is
>valid or not. However I know that it is possible to extend an Office 2003
>word document with my own XML. What I don't understand is how this can be!

Yes, it's through the use of namespaces that Word 2003 mixes WordML with
your schema-specific markup.

>Is there some way of writing a schema which enables me to define where
>within an Office 2003 word document it's valid for elements from my
>namespace to appear?

No; you can't modify the WordML schema. However once you establish the
location of your root element, you can control element placement through
your schema.

I suggest you download the WordML schema and documentation, the XML Toolbox,
and the Smart Document SDK.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/office

--
Mary McRae
blogs: http://blogs.officezealot.com/mary
web: http://www.office-xml.com