Glossary

This document is a list of common or unusual terms used in EVE third-party development and their meanings.

APIs & Data sources

• ESI — "EVE Swagger Interface"
  The official RESTful API for EVE third-party development.
• SDE — "Static Data Export"
  Export of static game data (only changing with game updates).
• CREST — "Carbon RESTful API"
  Previous generation third-party development API (defunct since 2018).
• XML API
  Previous generation third-party development API (defunct since 2018).
• IGB — "In-Game Browser"
  In-game browser and related APIs (defunct since 2016).
• Static Data Dump
  Prior version of the SDE.

Data Formats

• EFT — "EVE Fitting Tool"
  Human-Readable format for ship fittings from the now-defunct third-party program of the same name, used in-game for fit copying and pasting.
• Ship DNA
  Compact data format for ship fittings, used in-game for fit links.
• XML Fitting
  XML-based fitting format, used in-game for file-based fit export/import.

Data Types

• Type
  Game object. Types describe most "things" in the game; cargo items, ships, objects in space.
  Found in the SDE in types.yaml, through ESI under /universe/types/.
• Item
  An individual instance of a type; e.g., Type 648 ("Badger") describes all Badger ships, any individual assembled ship has a unique itemID.
  An "object" as opposed to a "class" in programming terms.
• Group
  Collection of related Types.
  Not to be confused with MetaGroup or MarketGroup.
  Found in the SDE in groups.yaml, through ESI under /universe/groups/.
• Category
  Collection of related Groups.
  Usually differentiates the "kind" of object; E.g. "Ship" and "Module" are different Categories.
  Found in the SDE in categories.yaml, through ESI under /universe/categories/.
• MetaGroup
  Tech-tier such as T1/T2/T3/Faction.
  Not to be confused with regular item Group or MarketGroup.
  Found in the SDE in metaGroups.yaml, not available through ESI.
• MarketGroup
  A single tab (or tab group) in the market.
  Not to be confused with regular item Group or MetaGroup.
  Found in the SDE in marketGroups.yaml, through ESI under /markets/groups/.
• Icon
  Icon images, such as inventory icons, UI icons, overview icons, etc.
  Found in the SDE in icons.yaml, not available through ESI.
• Graphic
  Data about 3D models; Model geometry, textures, icons/renders of those models.
  Found in the SDE in graphics.yaml, through ESI under /universe/graphics/.
• Attribute
  (Additional) properties of a Type, such as HP, maximum velocity, and other item stats.
  Found in the SDE in dogmaAttributes.yaml, through ESI under /dogma/attributes/.
• Effect
  Game logic element. Describes interactions between attributes.
  Some properties are also stored as effects rather than attributes (E.g. which slot a module uses).
  Found in the SDE in dogmaEffects.yaml, through ESI under /dogma/effects/.

Technical & other terms

• BSD — "Branched Static Data"
  Old authoring format for game data, not all data has been ported over to the new FSD "File Static Data".
  No meaningful difference to FSD for users.
  
• FSD — "File Static Data"
  New authoring format for game data, not all data has been ported over.
  No meaningful difference to BSD for users.
• Dogma
  Collective term for Attributes, Effects and the game logic around them.
• Monolith
  The EVE Online servers (in particular, the database) for the game itself, as opposed to other services like ESI.