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What is relational and what is hierarchial?
Meaning, with Object Oriented Data structures, a relationship is established to define child objects and siblings and multiple inheritance, etc. The data is extensible and procedures are redefinable, etc. Presentation of the data is independent of the data because default methods can be overidden without changing the data itself.

OTOH, With relational data structures, a key field on every data source defines the link to the related data in any other data source. A key data source is used to reference the other fields of the other data sources that are needed in the presentation so a loose hierarchy exists by definitions of indexes and fields.

In essence, an hierarchy and a relationship are two different sides of the same coin. Nothing new. Only how you approach it. How about wide trees, tall trees, B-trees, R-trees,....

Same thing. There exists a relationship that define hierarchies or there exists an hierarchy that define relationships. It is not the data that is different but the storage/retrival of such (provided that there exists a separation of data and presentation). Only when data and presentation are tied will you get a non-relational, non-hierarchial data structure.

Personally, I always found it easier to think of Objects in a "how is this related to..." sense than a "who is this inherited from..." sense. You can look at object in a relational or an hierarchial sense. The beauty of XML is that it defines the relationships/hierarchy within the data structure (but not the presentation) so that the data can be presented by any presentation engine in any form suitable to the end user without the dictates of the application that created the data.

This is not true of the current MSO file formats where the presentation is within the data and must be interpreted by the originating app --OLE, DLL's, etc.-- or through licensed "filters" or special viewers.
Posted by: The King's Servant   Posted on: 06/02/05 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use
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The difference is  jorwell | 06/02/05
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What do you think?

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