ice.NET Key Concepts: Attribute Definitions

Attribute Definitions determine which attributes can be assigned to an object or a relationship of a specific type.

• Attribute Definitions (like all schema elements) are organized in packages.
• Every Attribute Definition is identified by its Attribute Definition ID. The ID does not change and exists until the Attribute Definition is deleted. The ID is unique within the scope of the current system context (i.e. normally within a database or an XML document).
• Furthermore, every Attribute Definition is identified by its Attribute Definition name. This name has to be choosen by the developer who creates the Attribute Definition and should reflect the semantics of the attribute. The Attribute Definition name has to be unique within the scope of its containing Object Type or Relationship Type. The character set of object type names is limited to the capability of the XML QName specification in order to support programming concepts like XML Schema or code generators.
• Every Attribute Definition has a display name and a description. The display name is used for UI and other visualization purposes and provides the possibility to assign a user-friendly name to the Attribute Definition. The display name does not have to be unique (though it is recommended to ensure uniqueness within a reasonable scope). It can contain any unicode characters (e.g. umlauts or scandinavian special characters).