Difference/similarities between xsd:any and xsd:anyType

Question

I am reading about XML, XML-Schema, DTD and I don't really understand the difference between xsd:any and xsd:anyType.

Can someone explain this to me or point to some good article? (please don't link to the XML-Schema specifications - I read that and I'm more confused)

TIA

Answer 1

This post explains it nicely. I quote:

xsd:anyType is a type, like xsd:integer (though xsd:anyType is special in that it can act as a simple or complex type, and it places essentially no restrictions on the tree that it validates -- think of it loosely as the Schema language's analog of java.lang.Object).

A sample use would be:

<xsd:element name="e" type="xsd:anyType"/> 

This would mean that elements named <e> can have any content, any attributes, etc.

xs:any is a wildcard, usable as a term in a content model. For example:

<xsd:complexType name="T">   <xsd:sequence>     <xsd:element ref="A"/>     <xsd:any />     <xsd:element ref="C"/>   </xsd:sequence> </xsd:complexType> 

Elements of type T must have content <A/><???/><C/>, where <???> can be any named element. Now, if you look really closely there is an approximation to the definition of xsd:anyType given for reference in the Recommendation, and it uses an xsd:any wildcard as the means of saying that it allows any elements.

Also take a look at the XML Schema.