.. _glossary:

==========
 Glossary
==========

.. glossary::

   data type

     In the context of the |project| project, data types are
     characterized by abstract structure descriptions (but neither
     specific layout in memory, nor associated
     behavior). :term:`mechanism` s describe ways of (de)serializing
     data types from/to e.g. patterns of octets
     (i.e. :term:`wire-schema` s).

   data holder

     Classes whose primary purpose consists in "holding" data (as
     opposed to exhibiting a specific behavior). In the |project|
     context, generated code often centers around such classes.

   mechanism

     Abstract notion of a serialization mechanism. Describes the
     transformations from instances of abstract data types to/from
     sequences of octets.

     Concrete mechanism implementations usually (de)serialize
     :term:`data holder` s for a specific programming language.

   wire-schema

     A specific structure of octets produced and consumed by
     serialization :term:`mechanism` s.