HP System Dictionary/XL General Reference Manual Vol 1 (32256-90004)

2- 12
• relationship class names
• attribute names
• scope names
• entity occurrence names within a domain within an entity type
Each of the above sets is divided into two parts, internal names and external names, which are described
below. Each part is considered a set of names.
Internal and External Names
Every dictionary definition, whether a structural component (for example, entity type) or an entity
occurrence, has both an internal name and an external name associated with it. The internal name, which
can never change, is intended for use by software products used with the dictionary that rely on given
names for identification purposes. The external name, which is fully customizable and localizable, is
intended for end users or those accessing the dictionary through a user interface facility.
This flexible scheme allows software developers to extend the structure of the dictionary or add
occurrences using internal names of a personal nature (for example, ISV-RESOURCE entity type) that are
less likely to conflict with existing names. You can then use the external names to make the extensions
more friendly. For example, if a RESOURCE entity type did not exist, then ISV-RESOURCE could be
externally named RESOURCE.
System Dictionary requires only one name to create a definition in the dictionary. You can use that name
as both the internal and external name provided that no conflict occurs with any existing names. For
example, an end user creates a domain MY-DOMAIN and adds it to the dictionary. That name will become
both the internal and external name. However, if that name conflicts with an existing internal or existing
external domain name then the creation is not completed. The internal and external names are considered
to be part of different sets of names. The same name can exist in both sets, but it must be unique within
each set.
When opening the dictionary, you must specify whether you are using the internal or external name set
during the current dictionary session. During that session, with the exception of creation operations where
you can supply one or two names, you can use only one name type.
NOTE In the future, Hewlett Packard will prefix all names of objects it adds to the core set
with "HP". To avoid potential name conflicts, do not create any entity types, relation-
ship types, relationship classes, attributes, scopes, or domains, prefixed with "HP".
Internal Numbering
System Dictionary associates an internal number to each component within System Dictionary. The
responsibility for these numbers is completely under the control of System Dictionary. The number value
System Dictionary assigns to a particular component does not necessarily follow any set pattern. The
SDMAIN program and the System Dictionary intrinsics use internal numbering.
Dictionary Control Operations
Dictionary control operations consist of the functions that set global controls on the dictionary, and are
described separately below.
Initializing/Reinitializing the Dictionary
You can initiate System Dictionary only through the program SDINIT. The procedure for running this
program is explained in the first part of the HP System Dictionary/XL General Reference Manual, Volume