Realith Structure ​

Structure is the published form in which an object becomes admissible to the Realith network.

Structure defines not only a description of fields. It defines the admissible form of the object and the regime of behavior that the network recognizes as admissible for that type of object.

What structure defines ​

Structure defines:

• admissible fields and elements;
• the basis of object identity;
• mandatory and optional features;
• admissible relations;
• admissible transitions;
• requirements for confirmations;
• conditions of recognition;
• limits of contour applicability;
• admissible derived representations.

Accordingly, structure is not the same as an application data schema and should not be understood as a simple storage format.

Why structure is primary ​

In Realith, the object does not exist outside structure. This means the network should not first have “an object in general” and then attempt to interpret its form through the private means of an application.

A stricter formula is this: the object is the main network unit, and structure defines the form and behavioral contract of that object.

Structure and version ​

Every object must refer to a specific Structure Version. This is necessary so that different subjects can read the object in the same way, distinguish a change of structure from a change of instance, and verify transition compatibility.

What structure is not ​

Structure is not the same as:

• a class label;
• a list of screen fields;
• the private ontology of one application;
• a hidden set of business rules without publication.

If a network is built around a ready-made list of classes without a discipline of published structures, it turns not into infrastructure but into a closed application system.

Structure by itself does not yet explain the behavioral regime of the object. That is done through structure properties.