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LIBXO(3)	       FreeBSD Library Functions Manual		      LIBXO(3)

NAME
     xo_format -- content of format descriptors	for xo_emit

DESCRIPTION
     libxo uses	format strings to control the rendering	of data	into various
     output styles, including text, XML, JSON, and HTML.  Each format string
     contains a	set of zero or more "field descriptions", which	describe inde-
     pendent data fields.  Each	field description contains a set of
     "modifiers", a "content string", and zero,	one, or	two "format
     descriptors".  The	modifiers tell libxo what the field is and how to
     treat it, while the format	descriptors are	formatting instructions	using
     printf(3)-style format strings, telling libxo how to format the field.
     The field description is placed inside a set of braces, with a colon
     (`:') after the modifiers and a slash (`/') before	each format descrip-
     tors.  Text may be	intermixed with	field descriptions within the format
     string.

     The field description is given as follows:

	       '{' [ role | modifier ]*	[',' long-names	]* ':' [ content ]
		       [ '/' field-format [ '/'	encoding-format	]] '}'

     The role describes	the function of	the field, while the modifiers enable
     optional behaviors.  The contents,	field-format, and encoding-format are
     used in varying ways, based on the	role.  These are described in the fol-
     lowing sections.

     Braces can	be escaped by using double braces, similar to "%%" in
     printf(3).	 The format string "{{braces}}"	would emit "{braces}".

     In	the following example, three field descriptors appear.	The first is a
     padding field containing three spaces of padding, the second is a label
     ("In stock"), and the third is a value field ("in-stock").	 The in-stock
     field has a "%u" format that will parse the next argument passed to the
     xo_emit(3), function as an	unsigned integer.

	       xo_emit("{P:   }{Lwc:In stock}{:in-stock/%u}\n",	65);

     This single line of code can generate text	("In stock: 65\n"), XML
     ("<in-stock>65</in-stock>"), JSON ('"in-stock": 65'), or HTML (too
     lengthy to	be listed here).

     While roles and modifiers typically use single character for brevity,
     there are alternative names for each which	allow more verbose formatting
     strings.  These names must	be preceded by a comma,	and may	follow any
     single-character values:

	       xo_emit("{L,white,colon:In stock}{,key:in-stock/%u}\n", 65);

   Field Roles
     Field roles are optional, and indicate the	role and formatting of the
     content.  The roles are listed below; only	one role is permitted:

     M Name	    Description
     C color	    Field is a color or	effect
     D decoration   Field is non-text (e.g. colon, comma)
     E error	    Field is an	error message
     L label	    Field is text that prefixes	a value
     N note	    Field is text that follows a value
     P padding	    Field is spaces needed for vertical	alignment
     T title	    Field is a title value for headings
     U units	    Field is the units for the previous	value field
     V value	    Field is the name of field (the default)
     W warning	    Field is a warning message
     [ start-anchor Begin a section of anchored	variable-width text
     ] stop-anchor  End	a section of anchored variable-width text

	      EXAMPLE:
		  xo_emit("{L:Free}{D::}{P:   }{:free/%u} {U:Blocks}\n",
			  free_blocks);

     When a role is not	provided, the "value" role is used as the default.

     Roles and modifiers can also use more verbose names, when preceded	by a
     comma:

	      EXAMPLE:
		   xo_emit("{,label:Free}{,decoration::}{,padding:   }"
			  "{,value:free/%u} {,units:Blocks}\n",
			  free_blocks);

   The Color Role ({C:})
     Colors and	effects	control	how text values	are displayed; they are	used
     for display styles	(TEXT and HTML).

	       xo_emit("{C:bold}{:value}{C:no-bold}\n",	value);

     Colors and	effects	remain in effect until modified	by other "C"-role
     fields.

	       xo_emit("{C:bold}{C:inverse}both{C:no-bold}only inverse\n");

     If	the content is empty, the "reset" action is performed.

	       xo_emit("{C:both,underline}{:value}{C:}\n", value);

     The content should	be a comma-separated list of zero or more colors or
     display effects.

	       xo_emit("{C:bold,underline,inverse}All three{C:no-bold,no-inverse}\n");

     The color content can be either static, when placed directly within the
     field descriptor, or a printf-style format	descriptor can be used,	if
     preceded by a slash ("/"):

	      xo_emit("{C:/%s%s}{:value}{C:}", need_bold ? "bold" : "",
		      need_underline ? "underline" : "", value);

     Color names are prefixed with either "fg-"	or "bg-" to change the fore-
     ground and	background colors, respectively.

	       xo_emit("{C:/fg-%s,bg-%s}{Lwc:Cost}{:cost/%u}{C:reset}\n",
		       fg_color, bg_color, cost);

     The following table lists the supported effects:

     Name	   Description
     bg-xxxxx	   Change background color
     bold	   Start bold text effect
     fg-xxxxx	   Change foreground color
     inverse	   Start inverse (aka reverse) text effect
     no-bold	   Stop	bold text effect
     no-inverse	   Stop	inverse	(aka reverse) text effect
     no-underline  Stop	underline text effect
     normal	   Reset effects (only)
     reset	   Reset colors	and effects (restore defaults)
     underline	   Start underline text	effect

     The following color names are supported:

     Name
     black
     blue
     cyan
     default
     green
     magenta
     red
     white
     yellow

   The Decoration Role ({D:})
     Decorations are typically punctuation marks such as colons, semi-colons,
     and commas	used to	decorate the text and make it simpler for human	read-
     ers.  By marking these distinctly,	HTML usage scenarios can use CSS to
     direct their display parameters.

	       xo_emit("{D:((}{:name}{D:))}\n",	name);

   The Gettext Role ({G:})
     libxo supports internationalization (i18n)	through	its use	of gettext(3).
     Use the "{G:}" role to request that the remaining part of the format
     string, following the "{G:}" field, be handled using gettext().  Since
     gettext() uses the	string as the key into the message catalog, libxo uses
     a simplified version of the format	string that removes unimportant	field
     formatting	and modifiers, stopping	minor formatting changes from impact-
     ing the expensive translation process.  A developer change	such as	chang-
     ing "/%06d" to "/%08d" should not force hand inspection of	all .po	files.

     The simplified version can	be generated for a single message using	the
     "xopo -s <text>" command, or an entire .pot can be	translated using the
     "xopo -f <input> -o <output>" command.

	      xo_emit("{G:}Invalid token\n");

     The {G:} role allows a domain name	to be set.  gettext() calls will con-
     tinue to use that domain name until the current format string processing
     is	complete, enabling a library function to emit strings using it's own
     catalog.  The domain name can be either static as the content of the
     field, or a format	can be used to get the domain name from	the arguments.

	      xo_emit("{G:libc}Service unavailable in restricted mode\n");

   The Label Role ({L:})
     Labels are	text that appears before a value.

	       xo_emit("{Lwc:Cost}{:cost/%u}\n", cost);

   The Note Role ({N:})
     Notes are text that appears after a value.

	       xo_emit("{:cost/%u} {N:per year}\n", cost);

   The Padding Role ({P:})
     Padding represents	whitespace used	before and between fields.  The	pad-
     ding content can be either	static,	when placed directly within the	field
     descriptor, or a printf-style format descriptor can be used, if preceded
     by	a slash	("/"):

	       xo_emit("{P:	   }{Lwc:Cost}{:cost/%u}\n", cost);
	       xo_emit("{P:/30s}{Lwc:Cost}{:cost/%u}\n", "", cost);

   The Title Role ({T:})
     Titles are	heading	or column headers that are meant to be displayed to
     the user.	The title can be either	static,	when placed directly within
     the field descriptor, or a	printf-style format descriptor can be used, if
     preceded by a slash ("/"):

	       xo_emit("{T:Interface Statistics}\n");
	       xo_emit("{T:/%20.20s}{T:/%6.6s}\n", "Item Name",	"Cost");

   The Units Role ({U:})
     Units are the dimension by	which values are measured, such	as degrees,
     miles, bytes, and decibels.  The units field carries this information for
     the previous value	field.

	       xo_emit("{Lwc:Distance}{:distance/%u}{Uw:miles}\n", miles);

     Note that the sense of the	'w' modifier is	reversed for units; a blank is
     added before the contents,	rather than after it.

     When the XOF_UNITS	flag is	set, units are rendered	in XML as the "units"
     attribute:

	       <distance units="miles">50</distance>

     Units can also be rendered	in HTML	as the "data-units" attribute:

	       <div class="data" data-tag="distance" data-units="miles"
		    data-xpath="/top/data/distance">50</div>

   The Value Role ({V:}	and {:})
     The value role is used to represent the a data value that is interesting
     for the non-display output	styles (XML and	JSON).	Value is the default
     role; if no other role designation	is given, the field is a value.	 The
     field name	must appear within the field descriptor, followed by one or
     two format	descriptors.  The first	format descriptor is used for display
     styles (TEXT and HTML), while the second one is used for encoding styles
     (XML and JSON).  If no second format is given, the	encoding format	de-
     faults to the first format, with any minimum width	removed.  If no	first
     format is given, both format descriptors default to "%s".

	       xo_emit("{:length/%02u}x{:width/%02u}x{:height/%02u}\n",
		       length, width, height);
	       xo_emit("{:author} wrote
		       author, poem, year);

   The Anchor Roles ({[:} and {]:})
     The anchor	roles allow a set of strings by	be padded as a group, but
     still be visible to xo_emit(3) as distinct	fields.	 Either	the start or
     stop anchor can give a field width	and it can be either directly in the
     descriptor	or passed as an	argument.  Any fields between the start	and
     stop anchor are padded to meet the	minimum	width given.

     To	give a width directly, encode it as the	content	of the anchor tag:

	       xo_emit("({[:10}{:min/%d}/{:max/%d}{]:})\n", min, max);

     To	pass a width as	an argument, use "%d" as the format, which must	appear
     after the "/".  Note that only "%d" is supported for widths.  Using any
     other value could ruin your day.

	       xo_emit("({[:/%d}{:min/%d}/{:max/%d}{]:})\n", width, min, max);

     If	the width is negative, padding will be added on	the right, suitable
     for left justification.  Otherwise	the padding will be added to the left
     of	the fields between the start and stop anchors, suitable	for right jus-
     tification.  If the width is zero,	nothing	happens.  If the number	of
     columns of	output between the start and stop anchors is less than the ab-
     solute value of the given width, nothing happens.

     Widths over 8k are	considered probable errors and not supported.  If
     XOF_WARN is set, a	warning	will be	generated.

   Field Modifiers
     Field modifiers are flags which modify the	way content emitted for	par-
     ticular output styles:

     M Name	      Description
     a argument	      The content appears as a "const char *" argument
     c colon	      A	colon (":") is appended	after the label
     d display	      Only emit	field for display styles (text/HTML)
     e encoding	      Only emit	for encoding styles (XML/JSON)
     h humanize	(hn)  Format large numbers in human-readable style
       hn-space	     Humanize: Place space between numeric and unit
       hn-decimal    Humanize: Add a decimal digit, if number <	10
       hn-1000	     Humanize: Use 1000	as divisor instead of 1024
     k key	      Field is a key, suitable for XPath predicates
     l leaf-list     Field is a	leaf-list, a list of leaf values
     n no-quotes     Do	not quote the field when using JSON style
     q quotes	      Quote the	field when using JSON style
     t trim	      Trim leading and trailing	whitespace
     w white space    A	blank (" ") is appended	after the label

     For example, the modifier string "Lwc" means the field has	a label	role
     (text that	describes the next field) and should be	followed by a colon
     ('c') and a space ('w').  The modifier string "Vkq" means the field has a
     value role, that it is a key for the current instance, and	that the value
     should be quoted when encoded for JSON.

     Roles and modifiers can also use more verbose names, when preceded	by a
     comma.  For example, the modifier string "Lwc" (or	"L,white,colon") means
     the field has a label role	(text that describes the next field) and
     should be followed	by a colon ('c') and a space ('w').  The modifier
     string "Vkq" (or ":key,quote") means the field has	a value	role (the de-
     fault role), that it is a key for the current instance, and that the
     value should be quoted when encoded for JSON.

   The Argument	Modifier ({a:})
     The argument modifier indicates that the content of the field descriptor
     will be placed as a UTF-8 string (const char *) argument within the
     xo_emit parameters.

	       EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("{La:}	{a:}\n", "Label	text", "label",	"value");
	       TEXT:
		 Label text value
	       JSON:
		 "label": "value"
	       XML:
		 <label>value</label>

     The argument modifier allows field	names for value	fields to be passed on
     the stack,	avoiding the need to build a field descriptor using
     snprintf(1).  For many field roles, the argument modifier is not needed,
     since those roles have specific mechanisms	for arguments, such as
     "{C:fg-%s}".

   The Colon Modifier ({c:})
     The colon modifier	appends	a single colon to the data value:

	       EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("{Lc:Name}{:name}\n", "phil");
	       TEXT:
		 Name:phil

     The colon modifier	is only	used for the TEXT and HTML output styles.  It
     is	commonly combined with the space modifier ('{w:}').  It	is purely a
     convenience feature.

   The Display Modifier	({d:})
     The display modifier indicated the	field should only be generated for the
     display output styles, TEXT and HTML.

	       EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("{Lcw:Name}{d:name} {:id/%d}\n", "phil", 1);
	       TEXT:
		 Name: phil 1
	       XML:
		 <id>1</id>

     The display modifier is the opposite of the encoding modifier, and	they
     are often used to give to distinct	views of the underlying	data.

   The Encoding	Modifier ({e:})
     The encoding modifier indicated the field should only be generated	for
     the encoding output styles, such as JSON and XML.

	       EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("{Lcw:Name}{:name} {e:id/%d}\n", "phil", 1);
	       TEXT:
		 Name: phil
	       XML:
		 <name>phil</name><id>1</id>

     The encoding modifier is the opposite of the display modifier, and	they
     are often used to give to distinct	views of the underlying	data.

   The Humanize	Modifier ({h:})
     The humanize modifier is used to render large numbers as in a human-read-
     able format.  While numbers like "44470272" are completely	readable to
     computers and savants, humans will	generally find "44M" more meaningful.

     "hn" can be used as an alias for "humanize".

     The humanize modifier only	affects	display	styles (TEXT and HMTL).	 The
     "no-humanize" option will block the function of the humanize modifier.

     There are a number	of modifiers that affect details of humanization.
     These are only available in as full names,	not single characters.	The
     "hn-space"	modifier places	a space	between	the number and any multiplier
     symbol, such as "M" or "K"	(ex: "44 K").  The "hn-decimal"	modifier will
     add a decimal point and a single tenths digit when	the number is less
     than 10 (ex: "4.4K").  The	"hn-1000" modifier will	use 1000 as divisor
     instead of	1024, following	the JEDEC-standard instead of the more natural
     binary powers-of-two tradition.

	       EXAMPLE:
		   xo_emit("{h:input/%u}, {h,hn-space:output/%u}, "
		      "{h,hn-decimal:errors/%u}, {h,hn-1000:capacity/%u}, "
		      "{h,hn-decimal:remaining/%u}\n",
		       input, output, errors, capacity,	remaining);
	       TEXT:
		   21, 57 K, 96M, 44M, 1.2G

     In	the HTML style,	the original numeric value is rendered in the
     "data-number" attribute on	the <div> element:

	       <div class="data" data-tag="errors"
		    data-number="100663296">96M</div>

   The Gettext Modifier	({g:})
     The gettext modifier is used to translate individual fields using the
     gettext domain (typically set using the "{G:}" role) and current language
     settings.	Once libxo renders the field value, it is passed to
     gettext(3), where it is used as a key to find the native language trans-
     lation.

     In	the following example, the strings "State" and "full" are passed to
     gettext() to find locale-based translated strings.

	       xo_emit("{Lgwc:State}{g:state}\n", "full");

   The Key Modifier ({k:})
     The key modifier is used to indicate that a particular field helps
     uniquely identify an instance of list data.

	       EXAMPLE:
		   xo_open_list("user");
		   for (i = 0; i < num_users; i++) {
		       xo_open_instance("user");
		       xo_emit("User {k:name} has {:count} tickets\n",
			  user[i].u_name, user[i].u_tickets);
		       xo_close_instance("user");
		   }
		   xo_close_list("user");

     Currently the key modifier	is only	used when generating XPath values for
     the HTML output style when	XOF_XPATH is set, but other uses are likely in
     the near future.

   The Leaf-List Modifier ({l:})
     The leaf-list modifier is used to distinguish lists where each instance
     consists of only a	single value.  In XML, these are rendered as single
     elements, where JSON renders them as arrays.

	       EXAMPLE:
		   xo_open_list("user");
		   for (i = 0; i < num_users; i++) {
		       xo_emit("Member {l:name}\n", user[i].u_name);
		   }
		   xo_close_list("user");
	       XML:
		   <user>phil</user>
		   <user>pallavi</user>
	       JSON:
		   "user": [ "phil", "pallavi" ]

   The No-Quotes Modifier ({n:})
     The no-quotes modifier (and its twin, the 'quotes'	modifier) affect the
     quoting of	values in the JSON output style.  JSON uses quotes for string
     values, but no quotes for numeric,	boolean, and null data.	 xo_emit(3)
     applies a simple heuristic	to determine whether quotes are	needed,	but
     often this	needs to be controlled by the caller.

	       EXAMPLE:
		 const char *bool = is_true ? "true" : "false";
		 xo_emit("{n:fancy/%s}", bool);
	       JSON:
		 "fancy": true

   The Plural Modifier ({p:})
     The plural	modifier selects the appropriate plural	form of	an expression
     based on the most recent number emitted and the current language set-
     tings.  The contents of the field should be the singular and plural Eng-
     lish values, separated by a comma:

	       xo_emit("{:bytes} {Ngp:byte,bytes}\n", bytes);

     The plural	modifier is meant to work with the gettext modifier ({g:}) but
     can work independently.

     When used without the gettext modifier or when the	message	does not ap-
     pear in the message catalog, the first token is chosen when the last nu-
     meric value is equal to 1;	otherwise the second value is used, mimicking
     the simple	pluralization rules of English.

     When used with the	gettext	modifier, the ngettext(3) function is called
     to	handle the heavy lifting, using	the message catalog to convert the
     singular and plural forms into the	native language.

   The Quotes Modifier ({q:})
     The quotes	modifier (and its twin,	the 'no-quotes'	modifier) affect the
     quoting of	values in the JSON output style.  JSON uses quotes for string
     values, but no quotes for numeric,	boolean, and null data.	 xo_emit(3)
     applies a simple heuristic	to determine whether quotes are	needed,	but
     often this	needs to be controlled by the caller.

	       EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("{q:time/%d}",	2014);
	       JSON:
		 "year": "2014"

   The White Space Modifier ({w:})
     The white space modifier appends a	single space to	the data value:

	       EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("{Lw:Name}{:name}\n", "phil");
	       TEXT:
		 Name phil

     The white space modifier is only used for the TEXT	and HTML output
     styles.  It is commonly combined with the colon modifier ('{c:}').	 It is
     purely a convenience feature.

     Note that the sense of the	'w' modifier is	reversed for the units role
     ({Uw:}); a	blank is added before the contents, rather than	after it.

   Field Formatting
     The field format is similar to the	format string for printf(3).  Its use
     varies based on the role of the field, but	generally is used to format
     the field's contents.

     If	the format string is not provided for a	value field, it	defaults to
     "%s".

     Note a field definition can contain zero or more printf-style
     "directives", which are sequences that start with a '%' and end with one
     of	following characters: "diouxXDOUeEfFgGaAcCsSp".	 Each directive	is
     matched by	one of more arguments to the xo_emit(3)	function.

     The format	string has the form:

	     '%' format-modifier * format-character

     The format-modifier can be:

     o	 a '#' character, indicating the output	value should be	prefixed with
	 "0x", typically to indicate a base 16 (hex) value.

     o	 a minus sign ('-'), indicating	the output value should	be padded on
	 the right instead of the left.

     o	 a leading zero	('0') indicating the output value should be padded on
	 the left with zeroes instead of spaces	(' ').

     o	 one or	more digits ('0' - '9')	indicating the minimum width of	the
	 argument.  If the width in columns of the output value	is less	than
	 the minimum width, the	value will be padded to	reach the minimum.

     o	 a period followed by one or more digits indicating the	maximum	number
	 of bytes which	will be	examined for a string argument,	or the maximum
	 width for a non-string	argument.  When	handling ASCII strings this
	 functions as the field	width but for multi-byte characters, a single
	 character may be composed of multiple bytes.  xo_emit(3) will never
	 dereference memory beyond the given number of bytes.

     o	 a second period followed by one or more digits	indicating the maximum
	 width for a string argument.  This modifier cannot be given for
	 non-string arguments.

     o	 one or	more 'h' characters, indicating	shorter	input data.

     o	 one or	more 'l' characters, indicating	longer input data.

     o	 a 'z' character, indicating a 'size_t'	argument.

     o	 a 't' character, indicating a 'ptrdiff_t' argument.

     o	 a ' ' character, indicating a space should be emitted before positive
	 numbers.

     o	 a '+' character, indicating sign should emitted before	any number.

     Note that 'q', 'D', 'O', and 'U' are considered deprecated	and will be
     removed eventually.

     The format	character is described in the following	table:

     C Argument	Type   Format
     d int	       base 10 (decimal)
     i int	       base 10 (decimal)
     o int	       base 8 (octal)
     u unsigned	       base 10 (decimal)
     x unsigned	       base 16 (hex)
     X unsigned	long   base 16 (hex)
     D long	       base 10 (decimal)
     O unsigned	long   base 8 (octal)
     U unsigned	long   base 10 (decimal)
     e double	       [-]d.ddde+-dd
     E double	       [-]d.dddE+-dd
     f double	       [-]ddd.ddd
     F double	       [-]ddd.ddd
     g double	       as 'e' or 'f'
     G double	       as 'E' or 'F'
     a double	       [-]0xh.hhhp[+-]d
     A double	       [-]0Xh.hhhp[+-]d
     c unsigned	char   a character
     C wint_t	       a character
     s char *	       a UTF-8 string
     S wchar_t *       a unicode/WCS string
     p void *	       '%#lx'

     The 'h' and 'l' modifiers affect the size and treatment of	the argument:

     Mod d, i	      o, u, x, X
     hh	 signed	char  unsigned char
     h	 short	      unsigned short
     l	 long	      unsigned long
     ll	 long long    unsigned long long
     j	 intmax_t     uintmax_t
     t	 ptrdiff_t    ptrdiff_t
     z	 size_t	      size_t
     q	 quad_t	      u_quad_t

   UTF-8 and Locale Strings
     All strings for libxo must	be UTF-8.  libxo will handle turning them into
     locale-based strings for display to the user.

     For strings, the 'h' and 'l' modifiers affect the interpretation of the
     bytes pointed to argument.	 The default '%s' string is a 'char *' pointer
     to	a string encoded as UTF-8.  Since UTF-8	is compatible with ASCII data,
     a normal 7-bit ASCII string can be	used.  "%ls" expects a "wchar_t	*"
     pointer to	a wide-character string, encoded as 32-bit Unicode values.
     "%hs" expects a "char *" pointer to a multi-byte string encoded with the
     current locale, as	given by the LC_CTYPE, LANG, or	LC_ALL environment
     variables.	 The first of this list	of variables is	used and if none of
     the variables are set, the	locale defaults	to UTF-8.

     libxo will	convert	these arguments	as needed to either UTF-8 (for XML,
     JSON, and HTML styles) or locale-based strings for	display	in text	style.

	      xo_emit("All strings are utf-8 content {:tag/%ls}",
		      L"except for wide	strings");

     "%S" is equivalent	to "%ls".

     For example, a function is	passed a locale-base name, a hat size, and a
     time value.  The hat size is formatted in a UTF-8 (ASCII) string, and the
     time value	is formatted into a wchar_t string.

	       void print_order	(const char *name, int size,
				 struct	tm *timep) {
		   char	buf[32];
		   const char *size_val	= "unknown";

		   if (size > 0)
		       snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%d",	size);
		       size_val	= buf;
		   }

		   wchar_t when[32];
		   wcsftime(when, sizeof(when),	L"%d%b%y", timep);

		   xo_emit("The	hat for	{:name/%hs} is {:size/%s}.\n",
			   name, size_val);
		   xo_emit("It was ordered on {:order-time/%ls}.\n",
			   when);
	       }

     It	is important to	note that xo_emit(3) will perform the conversion re-
     quired to make appropriate	output.	 Text style output uses	the current
     locale (as	described above), while	XML, JSON, and HTML use	UTF-8.

     UTF-8 and locale-encoded strings can use multiple bytes to	encode one
     column of data.  The traditional "precision" (aka "max-width") value for
     "%s" printf formatting becomes overloaded since it	specifies both the
     number of bytes that can be safely	referenced and the maximum number of
     columns to	emit.  xo_emit(3) uses the precision as	the former, and	adds a
     third value for specifying	the maximum number of columns.

     In	this example, the name field is	printed	with a minimum of 3 columns
     and a maximum of 6.  Up to	ten bytes are in used in filling those col-
     umns.

	       xo_emit("{:name/%3.10.6s}", name);

   Characters Outside of Field Definitions
     Characters	in the format string that are not part of a field definition
     are copied	to the output for the TEXT style, and are ignored for the JSON
     and XML styles.  For HTML,	these characters are placed in a <div> with
     class "text".

	     EXAMPLE:
		 xo_emit("The hat is {:size/%s}.\n", size_val);
	     TEXT:
		 The hat is extra small.
	     XML:
		 <size>extra small</size>
	     JSON:
		 "size": "extra	small"
	     HTML:
		 <div class="text">The hat is </div>
		 <div class="data" data-tag="size">extra small</div>
		 <div class="text">.</div>

   '%n'	is Not Supported
     libxo does	not support the	'%n' directive.	 It is a bad idea and we just
     do	not do it.

   The Encoding	Format (eformat)
     The "eformat" string is the format	string used when encoding the field
     for JSON and XML.	If not provided, it defaults to	the primary format
     with any minimum width removed.  If the primary is	not given, both	de-
     fault to "%s".

EXAMPLE
     In	this example, the value	for the	number of items	in stock is emitted:

		   xo_emit("{P:	  }{Lwc:In stock}{:in-stock/%u}\n",
			   instock);

     This call will generate the following output:

	     TEXT:
		  In stock: 144
	     XML:
		 <in-stock>144</in-stock>
	     JSON:
		 "in-stock": 144,
	     HTML:
		 <div class="line">
		   <div	class="padding">   </div>
		   <div	class="label">In stock</div>
		   <div	class="decoration">:</div>
		   <div	class="padding"> </div>
		   <div	class="data" data-tag="in-stock">144</div>
		 </div>

     Clearly HTML wins the verbosity award, and	this output does not include
     XOF_XPATH or XOF_INFO data, which would expand the	penultimate line to:

		  <div class="data" data-tag="in-stock"
		     data-xpath="/top/data/item/in-stock"
		     data-type="number"
		     data-help="Number of items	in stock">144</div>

WHAT MAKES A GOOD FIELD	NAME?
     To	make useful, consistent	field names, follow these guidelines:

   Use lower case, even	for TLAs
     Lower case	is more	civilized.  Even TLAs should be	lower case to avoid
     scenarios where the differences between "XPath" and "Xpath" drive your
     users crazy.  Using "xpath" is simpler and	better.

   Use hyphens,	not underscores
     Use of hyphens is traditional in XML, and the XOF_UNDERSCORES flag	can be
     used to generate underscores in JSON, if desired.	But the	raw field name
     should use	hyphens.

   Use full words
     Do	not abbreviate especially when the abbreviation	is not obvious or not
     widely used.  Use "data-size", not	"dsz" or "dsize".  Use "interface" in-
     stead of "ifname",	"if-name", "iface", "if", or "intf".

   Use <verb>-<units>
     Using the form <verb>-<units> or <verb>-<classifier>-<units> helps	in
     making consistent,	useful names, avoiding the situation where one app
     uses "sent-packet"	and another "packets-sent" and another "pack-
     ets-we-have-sent".	 The <units> can be dropped when it is obvious,	as can
     obvious words in the classification.  Use "receive-after-window-packets"
     instead of	"received-packets-of-data-after-window".

   Reuse existing field	names
     Nothing is	worse than writing expressions like:

	       if ($src1/process[pid ==	$pid]/name ==
		   $src2/proc-table/proc/p[process-id == $pid]/proc-name) {
		   ...
	       }

     Find someone else who is expressing similar data and follow their fields
     and hierarchy.  Remember the quote	is not "Consistency is the hobgoblin
     of	little minds" but "A foolish consistency is the	hobgoblin of little
     minds".

   Think about your users
     Have empathy for your users, choosing clear and useful fields that	con-
     tain clear	and useful data.  You may need to augment the display content
     with xo_attr(3) calls or "{e:}" fields to make the	data useful.

   Do not use an arbitrary number postfix
     What does "errors2" mean?	No one will know.  "errors-after-restart"
     would be a	better choice.	Think of your users, and think of the future.
     If	you make "errors2", the	next guy will happily make "errors3" and be-
     fore you know it, someone will be asking what is the difference between
     errors37 and errors63.

   Be consistent, uniform, unsurprising, and predictable
     Think of your field vocabulary as an API.	You want it useful, expres-
     sive, meaningful, direct, and obvious.  You want the client application's
     programmer	to move	between	without	the need to understand a variety of
     opinions on how fields are	named.	They should see	the system as a	single
     cohesive whole, not a sack	of cats.

     Field names constitute the	means by which client programmers interact
     with our system.  By choosing wise	names now, you are making their	lives
     better.

     After using xolint(1) to find errors in your field	descriptors, use
     "xolint -V" to spell check	your field names and to	detect different names
     for the same data.	 "dropped-short" and "dropped-too-short" are both rea-
     sonable names, but	using them both	will lead users	to ask the difference
     between the two fields.  If there is no difference, use only one of the
     field names.  If there is a difference, change the	names to make that
     difference	more obvious.

SEE ALSO
     libxo(3), xolint(1), xo_emit(3)

HISTORY
     The libxo library first appeared in FreeBSD 11.0.

AUTHORS
     libxo was written by Phil Shafer <phil@freebsd.org>.

FreeBSD	13.0		       December	4, 2014			  FreeBSD 13.0

NAME | DESCRIPTION | EXAMPLE | WHAT MAKES A GOOD FIELD NAME? | SEE ALSO | HISTORY | AUTHORS

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