Elliot Rusty Harold in his "XML Bible" states right there on page 52 "Every XML document begins with an XML declaration that specifies the version of the XML in use." Well time for the monks to get out their erasers because as Mr. Mark Hartman pointed out to me ... Actually the <?xml version='1.0'> tag (XMLDecl) is optional, so an XML document can begin with a comment node (part of the Misc production below). See the XML Spec http://www.xml.com/axml/testaxml.htm productions: [22] prolog ::= XMLDecl? Misc* (doctypedecl Misc*)? [23] XMLDecl ::= '<?xml' VersionInfo EncodingDecl? SDDecl? S? '?>' [24] VersionInfo ::= S 'version' Eq (' VersionNum ' | " VersionNum ") [25] Eq ::= S? '=' S? [26] VersionNum ::= ([a-zA-Z0-9_.:] | '-')+ [27] Misc ::= Comment | PI | S ----- end of quote ---- Maybe next time I will check out the "XML Quraan", a more definitive source. But according to http://www.xml.com/axml/testaxml.htm Quote ... Because each XML entity not in UTF-8 or UTF-16 format must begin with an XML encoding declaration, in which the first characters must be '<?xml', any conforming processor can detect, after two to four octets of input, which of the following cases apply. In reading this list, it may help to know that in UCS-4, '<' is "#x0000003C" and '?' is "#x0000003F", and the Byte Order Mark required of UTF-16 data streams is "#xFEFF". -- end quote -- So now it seems that the existenance or non-existenence of of the "XML declaration" is dependent on the encoding !! So from all this I get: You Should have it, but you don't HAVE to have it, unless the encoding is not UTF-8 or UTF-16, in which case you DO HAVE to have it. That's the best they could come up with ! ! ! ;-) Mike ===== ("\''/").__..-''"`-. . `9_ 9 ) `-. ( ).`-._.`) Meow! (_Y_.)' ._ ) `._`. " -.-' _..`-'_..-_/ /-'_.' (l)-'' ((i).' ((!.' __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================== XML/EDI Group members-only discussion list Homepage = http://www.xmledi.com Brought to you by: Online Technologies Corporation Home of BizServe - www.bizserve.com TO UNSUBSCRIBE: Send email to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Leave the subject blank, and In the body of the message, enter ONLY: unsubscribe Questions/requests should be sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To join the XML/EDI Group complete the form located at: http://www.geocities.com/WallStreet/Floor/5815/mail1.htm
