Identifier

In data-processing Programming, the identifying are words which are recognized by the Compilateur or the interpreter and which allows, such of the labels, to indicate concepts of the Computer programming language: standard Variable S, , Constant S, etc

Among the various existing computer programming languages, one distinguishes the old ones which support identifiers ASCII and others those which support more modern identifiers Unicode or UCS2. Certain languages accept identifier however written in character sets local (like the Latin-1 or ISO 8859-1).

Languages with Unicode identifiers

Unicode defines in one of its appendices, a base to specify the identifiers, while making it possible each language to function on alternatives of this base.

The languages Ada, Java, Microsoft .NET, Perl 6, StarOffice BASIC are compatible with Unicode identifiers.

The languages Clisp, Delphi should/could be compatible with Unicode identifiers.

• ocaml-ulex

• For the language C, standard ISO/IEC 9899:1999 defines in its appendix normative D, the characters authorized in the identifiers, by taking again standards ISO/IEC TR 10176:1998. Whole of natures Latin, Greek, Cyrillic, Tibetans, and CJK are in particular allowed. 14 beaches of figures, in addition to the ASCII beach, as certain special characters are also authorized.

Rules of naming

The developers need sometimes to express the concepts which they use with words and symbols which theirs are familiar, in particular for nonthe english-speaking.

In addition, with the use growing of Internet, the use of Unicode répend. In programming, it is present:

• in the character strings of the languages, in particular Java and .NET represent by defect all the chains in Unicode.
• in the operating systems, in particular in Microsoft Windows.

The languages interfacing itself with Java and .NET require the support of Unicode identifiers, to be interopérables. Without that, a portion of the Espace of names would not be accessible.

Examples

• In Delphi the old identifiers started with a.z or underlined, followed a.z, 0..9, or underlined.

• With Unicode: continuation of alphabetical Unicode or underlined natures .

Relation with the Metadatum S

In the Languages of beaconing, but also in all the types of Computer's resources and all the types of application, one can employ Métadonnée S to describe the data. The identifier is one of the elements usually employed for the access to resources (URI). The identifier can be the subject of rules of naming.

See too

• Identifier (metadatum)

• Sigil (data-processing)