DataBlade Developers Kit User's Guide Introduction

This section describes the conventions that this manual uses. These conventions make it easier to gather information from this and other volumes in the documentation set. The following conventions are discussed:

• Typographical conventions
• Icon conventions
• Routine syntax conventions

This manual uses the following conventions to introduce new terms, describe command syntax, and so forth.

Convention	Meaning
KEYWORD	All primary elements in a programming language statement (keywords) appear in uppercase letters in a serif font.
italics italics italics	Within text, new terms and emphasized words appear in italics. Within syntax and code examples, variable values that you are to specify appear in italics.
boldface boldface	Names of program entities (such as classes, events, and tables), environment variables, file and pathnames, and interface elements (such as icons, menu items, and buttons) appear in boldface.
monospace monospace	Information that the product displays and information that you enter appear in a monospace typeface.
	This symbol indicates the end of product- or platform-specific information.
	This symbol indicates a menu item. For example, "Choose Tools Options" means choose the Options item from the Tools menu.

Tip: When you are instructed to "enter" characters or to "execute" a command, press RETURN immediately after the entry. When you are instructed to "type" the text or to "press" other keys, no RETURN is required.

Icon Conventions

Comment icons identify three types of information, as the following table describes. This information always appears in italics.

Icon	Label	Description
	Warning:	Identifies paragraphs that contain vital instructions, cautions, or critical information
	Important:	Identifies paragraphs that contain significant information about the feature or operation that is being described
	Tip:	Identifies paragraphs that offer additional details or shortcuts for the functionality that is being described

This guide uses the following conventions to specify routine syntax:

• Square brackets ( [ ] ) surround optional items.
• Curly brackets ( { } ) surround items that can be repeated zero or more times.
• A vertical line ( | ) separates alternatives.
• Comma-separated lists of values are indicated by a parameter value with a "_commalist" suffix. For example, colorlist=color_commalist might indicate "colorlist=red, blue, green."
• Routine parameters are italicized; arguments that must be specified as shown are not italicized.

These routine syntax conventions used in context look like this:

myfunction([optionalarg], {repeatablearg}, set | noset, 
myparam=my_commalist)