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Interface description language
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<h2 id="examples">Examples</h2> <ul><li><a href="https://developer.android.com/guide/components/aidl">AIDL</a>: <a href="/facts/Java_(programming_language)/9ScgFyAL">Java</a>-based, for <a href="/facts/Android_(operating_system)/nNyHb0xz">Android</a>; supports local and remote procedure calls, can be accessed from native applications by calling through <a href="/facts/Java_Native_Interface/Q3E0I6lL">Java Native Interface</a> (JNI)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Apache_Thrift/DWlecvw3">Apache Thrift</a>: from <a href="/facts/Apache_Software_Foundation/Xl9Tt9lE">Apache</a>, originally developed by <a href="/facts/Facebook/0IhXFR6u">Facebook</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Apache_Avro/eTn7FdRH">Avro IDL</a>: for the Apache Avro system</li> <li><a href="/facts/ASN.1/ryUN7doc">ASN.1</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Cap%2527n_Proto/pE4zLGXq">Cap'n Proto</a>: created by its former maintainer, avoids some of the perceived shortcomings of <a href="/facts/Protocol_Buffers/4Pj3zymo">Protocol Buffers</a>.</li> <li>Concise Data Definition Language (CDDL, RFC 8610):<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a> A Notation for <a href="/facts/CBOR/zL3Ctuf5">CBOR</a> and <a href="/facts/JSON/bs1rUAhd">JSON</a> data structures</li> <li>CortoScript: Describe data and/or interfaces for systems that require <a href="/facts/Semantic_interoperability/nNy54nb8">Semantic interoperability</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Etch_(protocol)/PpxWpFh0">Etch</a>: Cisco's Etch Cross-platform Service Description Language</li> <li><a href="/facts/Extensible_Data_Notation/CWWt0rX1">Extensible Data Notation</a> (EDN): <a href="/facts/Clojure/3JRNxKXx">Clojure</a> data format, similar to JSON</li> <li><a href="/facts/FlatBuffers/QAzSy9wt">FlatBuffers</a>: Serialization format from <a href="/facts/Google/GT9Sugza">Google</a> supporting zero-copy deserialization</li> <li><a href="/facts/Franca_IDL/8bKI1t1D">Franca IDL</a>: the open-source Franca interface definition language</li> <li><a href="https://fuchsia.dev/fuchsia-src/get-started/learn/fidl/fidl">FIDL</a>: Interface description language for the <a href="/facts/Fuchsia_(operating_system)/R6rWLC2q">Fuchsia Operating System</a> designed for writing app components in <a href="/facts/C_(programming_language)/Ky2No763">C</a>, <a href="/facts/C%252B%252B/Et0F2qn9">C++</a>, <a href="/facts/Dart_(programming_language)/xJ8tE6Tl">Dart</a>, <a href="/facts/Go_(programming_language)/oWlsmAFJ">Go</a> and <a href="/facts/Rust_(programming_language)/8JNMV19F">Rust</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a></li> <li><a href="/facts/IDL_specification_language/WcqyDzFl">IDL specification language</a>: the original Interface Description Language</li> <li><a href="https://docs.imandra.ai/ipl">IPL</a>: Imandra Protocol Language</li> <li><a href="/facts/JSON/bs1rUAhd">JSON</a> Web-Service Protocol (<a href="/facts/JSON-WSP/R2cURkBd">JSON-WSP</a>)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Lightweight_Imaging_Device_Interface_Language/jhJH3SCl">Lightweight Imaging Device Interface Language</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Microsoft_Interface_Definition_Language/zlqt5sj3">Microsoft Interface Definition Language</a> (MIDL): the Microsoft extension of OMG IDL to add support for <a href="/facts/Component_Object_Model/2DtIAufW">Component Object Model</a> (COM) and <a href="/facts/Distributed_Component_Object_Model/mpDM1JXX">Distributed Component Object Model</a> (DCOM)</li> <li><a href="/facts/OMG_IDL/VUDlTHs5">OMG IDL</a>: standardized by <a href="/facts/Object_Management_Group/SNpN8n9U">Object Management Group</a>, used in <a href="/facts/CORBA/VUDlTHs5">CORBA</a> (for DCE/RPC services) and <a href="/facts/Data_Distribution_Service/V2fu8coB">DDS</a> (for <a href="/facts/Data_modeling/bryA2moP">data modeling</a>), also selected by the W3C for exposing the DOM of XML, HTML, and CSS documents</li> <li><a href="/facts/OpenAPI_Specification/QrSdM4bg">OpenAPI Specification</a>: a standard for <a href="/facts/Web_API/oVloUoIe">Web APIs</a>, used by <a href="/facts/Swagger_(software)/99Vb5xtE">Swagger</a> and other technologies.</li> <li><a href="/facts/Open_Service_Interface_Definitions/yhxese0t">Open Service Interface Definitions</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Protocol_Buffers/4Pj3zymo">Protocol Buffers</a>: <a href="/facts/Google/GT9Sugza">Google</a>'s IDL</li> <li><a href="/facts/RESTful_Service_Description_Language/s5n4rmCn">RESTful Service Description Language</a> (RSDL)</li> <li><a href="https://smithy.io">Smithy</a>: An AWS-invented protocol-agnostic interface definition language.</li> <li>Specification Language for <a href="/facts/Internet_Communications_Engine/H0IbYqke">Internet Communications Engine</a> (Ice: <a href="/facts/Internet_Communications_Engine/H0IbYqke">Slice</a>)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Universal_Network_Objects/gp8UPI85">Universal Network Objects</a>: <a href="/facts/OpenOffice.org/561WcNgg">OpenOffice.org</a>'s component model</li> <li><a href="/facts/Web_Application_Description_Language/ao6xnzMK">Web Application Description Language</a> (WADL)</li> <li><a href="/facts/Web_IDL/1EYYbP3F">Web IDL</a> by <a href="/facts/WHATWG/WoyKwRJR">WHATWG</a>: can be used to describe interfaces that are intended to be implemented in web browsers</li> <li><a href="/facts/Web_Services_Description_Language/tQPIot4A">Web Services Description Language</a> (WSDL)</li> <li><a href="/facts/XCB/fpbewG2N">XCB</a>: X protocol description language for <a href="/facts/X_Window_System/ac2vRIQL">X Window System</a></li> <li>Cross Platform Interface Description Language (<a href="/facts/XPIDL/wLbPWDQD">XPIDL</a>): Mozilla's way to specify XPCOM interfaces</li></ul> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Component-based_software_engineering/eW5wvSHC">Component-based software engineering</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Interface-based_programming/CoPuqzXw">Interface-based programming</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Java_Interface_Definition_Language/4o0gJlol">Java Interface Definition Language</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/List_of_computing_and_IT_abbreviations/4F7l339F">List of computing and IT abbreviations</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Universal_Interface_Language/d8qWKcBo">Universal Interface Language</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/User_interface_markup_language/hXb1m1L4">User interface markup language</a></li></ul> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li><a href="https://resources.sei.cmu.edu/library/asset-view.cfm?assetid=5939">Documenting Software Architecture: Documenting Interfaces</a> (PDF)</li> <li><a href="https://www.omg.org/spec/IDL">OMG Specification of OMG IDL</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.omg.org/gettingstarted/omg_idl.htm">OMG Tutorial on OMG IDL</a></li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Birkholz, H.; Vigano, C.; Bormann, C. (2019). "Concise Data Definition Language (CDDL): A Notational Convention to Express Concise Binary Object Representation (CBOR) and JSON Data Structures". RFC Editor. doi:10.17487/RFC8610. S2CID 195857027. Retrieved 2022-05-24. <a href="https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc8610" target="_blank">https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc8610</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>"FIDL Overview". Fuchsia. Retrieved 2022-02-23. <a href="https://fuchsia.dev/fuchsia-src/concepts/fidl/overview" target="_blank">https://fuchsia.dev/fuchsia-src/concepts/fidl/overview</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>