Strings

The value length of a string is the number of bits in a bit string, octets in an octet string, or characters in a character string. Any constraints on the value length of a string are specified in the appropriate class definitions. The length is confined to the range 0 to 2-to-the-32nd-power.

Note: The length of a character string does not necessarily equal the number of characters it comprises because, for example, a single character can be represented by using several octets.

The elements of a string are numbered. The position of the first element is 0 (zero). The positions of successive elements are successive positive integers.

The syntaxes that form the string group are identified in the following table, which gives the secondary identifier assigned to each such syntax.

Note: The identifiers in the first, second, and third columns of the following table indicate the syntaxes of bit, octet, and character strings, respectively. The String group comprises all syntaxes identified in the table.

String Syntax Identifiers

Bit String Identifier	Octet String Identifier	Character String Identifier See Note 14
OM_S_BIT_STRING	OM_S_ENCODING_ STRING See Note 13	OM_S_GENERAL_ STRING
	OM_S_OBJECT_ IDENTIFIER_STRING See Note 15	OM_S_GENERALISED_ TIME_STRING
	OM_S_OCTET_STRING	OM_S_GRAPHIC_STRING OM_S_IA5_STRING OM_S_NUMERIC_STRING OM_S_OBJECT_ DESCRIPTOR_STRING OM_S_ PRINTABLE_STRING OM_S_TELETEX_STRING OM_S_UTC_TIME_STRING OM_S_VIDEOTEX_STRING OM_S_VISIBLE_STRING