Developing ColdFusion MX Applications with CFML
Elements of CFML

Reserved words

As with any programming tool, you cannot use just any word or name for ColdFusion variables, UDFs and custom tags. You must avoid using any name that can be confused with a ColdFusion element. In some cases, if you use a word that ColdFusion uses, for example, a built-in structure name. you can overwrite the ColdFusion data.

The following list indicates words you must not use for ColdFusion variables, user-defined function names, or custom tag names. While some of these words can be used safely in some situations, you can prevent errors by avoiding them entirely. For a complete list of reserved words, see CFML Reference.

• Built-in function names, such as Now or Hash
• Scope names, such as Form or Session
• Any name starting with cf. However, when you call a CFML custom tag directly, you prefix the custom tag page name with cf_.
• Operators, such as NE or IS
• The names of any built-in data structures, such as Error or File
• The names of any built-in variables, such as RecordCount or CGI variable names
• CFScript language element names such as for, default, or continue

You must also not create form field names ending in any of the following, except to specify a form field validation rule using a hidden form field name. (For more information on form field validation, see "Validating form field data types," in Chapter 26.)

• _integer
• _float
• _range
• _date
• _time
• _eurodate

Remember that ColdFusion is not case-sensitive. For example, all of the following are reserved words: IS, Is, iS, and is.

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