`<syntaxdiagram>`

A syntax diagram represents the syntax of a command, function call, or programming language statement.

Rendering expectations

Traditionally, the syntax diagram is formatted with "railroad tracks" that connect the units of the syntax together, but the presentation might vary depending on the output media.

Specialization hierarchy

The <syntaxdiagram> element is specialized from <fig>. It is defined in the syntax-diagram domain module, which is a specialization of the programming domain module.

Attributes

The following attributes are available on this element: display attributes and universal attributes.

Example

The following code sample shows how a <syntaxdiagram>can be used to illustrate the syntax of a basic file-copy command. The initial COPYF command is followed by the input directory and file name. The input is followed by a choice of either an output directory (and optional file name) or a file name.

<syntaxdiagram>
  <title>CopyFile</title>
  <groupseq><kwd>COPYF</kwd></groupseq>
  <groupcomp><var>input-directory</var><kwd>*INFILE</kwd></groupcomp>
  <groupchoice>
    <groupcomp><var>output-directory</var><kwd importance="optional">*OUTFILE</kwd></groupcomp>
    <groupcomp><kwd>*OUTFILE</kwd></groupcomp>
  </groupchoice>
</syntaxdiagram>