Effective XML: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your XML

Item 7. Parameterize DTDs

No one XML application can serve all uses. No one DTD can describe every necessary document. As obvious as this statement seems, there have been a number of failed efforts to develop DTDs that describe all possible documents in a given field, even fields as large as all business documents. A much more sensible approach is to design DTDs so they can be customized for different local environments. Elements and attributes can be added to or removed from particular systems. Names can be translated into the local language. Even content models can be adjusted to suit the local needs.

You cannot override attribute lists or element declarations in a DTD. However, you can override entity definitions, and this is the key to making ...