/*
 *
 *  Copyright (C) 1994-2025, OFFIS e.V.
 *  All rights reserved.  See COPYRIGHT file for details.
 *
 *  This software and supporting documentation were developed by
 *
 *    OFFIS e.V.
 *    R&D Division Health
 *    Escherweg 2
 *    D-26121 Oldenburg, Germany
 *
 *
 *  Module:  dcmdata
 *
 *  Author:  Gerd Ehlers
 *
 *  Purpose: Interface of class DcmItem
 *
 */


#ifndef DCITEM_H
#define DCITEM_H

#include "dcmtk/config/osconfig.h"    /* make sure OS specific configuration is included first */

#include "dcmtk/ofstd/offile.h"       /* for offile_off_t */
#include "dcmtk/dcmdata/dctypes.h"
#include "dcmtk/dcmdata/dcobject.h"
#include "dcmtk/dcmdata/dclist.h"
#include "dcmtk/dcmdata/dcpcache.h"


// forward declarations
class DcmElement;
class DcmJsonFormat;
class DcmSequenceOfItems;
class DcmSpecificCharacterSet;


/** a class representing a list of DICOM elements in which each
 *  element has a different tag and elements are maintained in
 *  increasing order of tags. In particular, a sequence item.
 */
class DCMTK_DCMDATA_EXPORT DcmItem
  : public DcmObject
{
  public:

    // be friend with "greater than" and "less than" operators that are defined
    // outside of this class
    friend OFBool operator< (const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs);
    friend OFBool operator> (const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs);
    friend OFBool operator<=(const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs);
    friend OFBool operator>=(const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs);

    /** default constructor
     */
    DcmItem();

    /** constructor.
     *  Create new item from given tag and length.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag for the new element
     *  @param len value length for the new element
     */
    DcmItem(const DcmTag &tag,
            const Uint32 len = 0);

    /** copy constructor
     *  @param old item to be copied
     */
    DcmItem(const DcmItem &old);

    /** assignment operator. Private creator cache is not copied
     *  as it is also the case for clone().
     *  @param obj the item to be copied
     *  @return Reference to this object after assignment
     */
    DcmItem &operator=(const DcmItem &obj);

    /** comparison operator that compares the value of this object
     *  with a given object of the same type. The tag of the element is also
     *  considered as the first component that is compared, followed by the
     *  object types (VR, i.e. DCMTK'S EVR) and the comparison of all value
     *  components of the object, preferably in the order declared in the
     *  object (if applicable). For item values that means that all elements
     *  within the items are compared to each other in ascending tag order.
     *  This may be an expensive operation.
     *  @param  rhs the right hand side of the comparison
     *  @return 0 if the object values are equal.
     *          -1 if this element has fewer components than the rhs element.
     *          Also -1 if the value of the first component that does not match
     *          is lower in this object than in rhs. Also returned if rhs
     *          cannot be casted to this object type or both objects are of
     *          different VR (i.e. the DcmEVR returned by the element's ident()
     *          call are different).
     *          1 if either this element has more components than the rhs
     *          element, or if the first component that does not match is
     *          greater in this object than in rhs object.
     */
    virtual int compare(const DcmItem& rhs) const;

    /** destructor
     */
    virtual ~DcmItem();

    /** clone method
     *  @return deep copy of this object
     */
    virtual DcmObject *clone() const
    {
      return new DcmItem(*this);
    }

    /** Virtual object copying. This method can be used for DcmObject
     *  and derived classes to get a deep copy of an object. Internally
     *  the assignment operator is called if the given DcmObject parameter
     *  is of the same type as "this" object instance. If not, an error
     *  is returned. This function permits copying an object by value
     *  in a virtual way which therefore is different to just calling the
     *  assignment operator of DcmElement which could result in slicing
     *  the object.
     *  @param rhs - [in] The instance to copy from. Has to be of the same
     *                class type as "this" object
     *  @return EC_Normal if copying was successful, error otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition copyFrom(const DcmObject& rhs);

    /** get type identifier
     *  @return type identifier of this class (EVR_item)
     */
    virtual DcmEVR ident() const;

    /** get value multiplicity
     *  @return always returns 1 (according to the DICOM standard)
     */
    virtual unsigned long getVM();

    /** get number of values (elements) stored in this item.
     *  The result is the same as card() unless overwritten in a derived class.
     *  @return number of elements in this item
     */
    virtual unsigned long getNumberOfValues();

    /** get cardinality of this item
     *  @return number of elements in this item
     */
    virtual unsigned long card() const;

    /** check if this element is a leaf node in a dataset tree.
     *  All subclasses of DcmElement except for DcmSequenceOfItems
     *  are leaf nodes, while DcmSequenceOfItems, DcmItem, DcmDataset etc.
     *  are not.
     *  @return true if leaf node, false otherwise.
     */
    virtual OFBool isLeaf() const { return OFFalse; }

    /** check if this item is nested in a sequence of items, i.e.\ not a
     *  top-level or stand-alone item/dataset
     *  @return true if this item is nested, false otherwise
     */
    virtual OFBool isNested() const;

    /** print all elements of the item to a stream
     *  @param out output stream
     *  @param flags optional flag used to customize the output (see DCMTypes::PF_xxx)
     *  @param level current level of nested items. Used for indentation.
     *  @param pixelFileName not used
     *  @param pixelCounter not used
     */
    virtual void print(STD_NAMESPACE ostream &out,
                       const size_t flags = 0,
                       const int level = 0,
                       const char *pixelFileName = NULL,
                       size_t *pixelCounter = NULL);

    /** @copydoc DcmObject::calcElementLength()
     */
    virtual Uint32 calcElementLength(const E_TransferSyntax xfer,
                                     const E_EncodingType enctype);

    /** calculate the value length (without attribute tag, VR and length field)
     *  of this DICOM element when encoded with the given transfer syntax and
     *  the given encoding type for sequences.
     *  If length encoding is set to be explicit and the item content is larger
     *  than the available 32-bit length field, then undefined length is
     *  returned. If "dcmWriteOversizedSeqsAndItemsUndefined" is disabled,
     *  also the internal DcmObject errorFlag is set to
     *  EC_SeqOrItemContentOverflow.
     *  @param xfer transfer syntax for length calculation
     *  @param enctype sequence encoding type for length calculation
     *  @return value length of DICOM element
     */
    virtual Uint32 getLength(const E_TransferSyntax xfer = EXS_LittleEndianImplicit,
                             const E_EncodingType enctype = EET_UndefinedLength);

    /** initialize the transfer state of this object. This method must be called
     *  before this object is written to a stream or read (parsed) from a stream.
     */
    virtual void transferInit();

    /** finalize the transfer state of this object. This method must be called
     *  when reading/writing this object from/to a stream has been completed.
     */
    virtual void transferEnd();

    /** get parent item of this object, i.e.\ the item/dataset in which the
     *  surrounding sequence element is stored.
     *  @return pointer to the parent item of this object (might be NULL)
     */
    virtual DcmItem *getParentItem();

    /** check if this DICOM object can be encoded in the given transfer syntax.
     *  @param newXfer transfer syntax in which the DICOM object is to be encoded
     *  @param oldXfer transfer syntax in which the DICOM object was read or created.
     *  @return true if object can be encoded in desired transfer syntax, false otherwise.
     */
    virtual OFBool canWriteXfer(const E_TransferSyntax newXfer,
                                const E_TransferSyntax oldXfer);

    /** This function reads the information of all attributes which
     *  are captured in the input stream and captures this information
     *  in elementList. Each attribute is represented as an element
     *  in this list. If not all information for an attribute could be
     *  read from the stream, the function returns EC_StreamNotifyClient.
     *  @param inStream      The stream which contains the information.
     *  @param ixfer         The transfer syntax which was used to encode
     *                       the information in inStream.
     *  @param glenc         Encoding type for group length; specifies
     *                       what will be done with group length tags.
     *  @param maxReadLength Maximum read length for reading an attribute value.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition read(DcmInputStream &inStream,
                             const E_TransferSyntax ixfer,
                             const E_GrpLenEncoding glenc = EGL_noChange,
                             const Uint32 maxReadLength = DCM_MaxReadLength);

    /** This function reads the information of all attributes which
     *  are captured in the input stream and captures this information
     *  in elementList, up to the attribute tag stopParsingAtElement.
     *  Each attribute is represented as an element
     *  in this list. If not all information for an attribute could be
     *  read from the stream, the function returns EC_StreamNotifyClient.
     *  @param inStream      The stream which contains the information.
     *  @param ixfer         The transfer syntax which was used to encode
     *                       the information in inStream.
     *  @param glenc         Encoding type for group length; specifies
     *                       what will be done with group length tags.
     *  @param maxReadLength Maximum read length for reading an attribute value.
     *  @param stopParsingAtElement parsing of the input stream is stopped when
     *                       this tag key or any higher tag is encountered.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition readUntilTag(DcmInputStream &inStream,
                                     const E_TransferSyntax ixfer,
                                     const E_GrpLenEncoding glenc = EGL_noChange,
                                     const Uint32 maxReadLength = DCM_MaxReadLength,
                                     const DcmTagKey &stopParsingAtElement = DCM_UndefinedTagKey);

    /** write object to a stream
     *  @param outStream DICOM output stream
     *  @param oxfer output transfer syntax
     *  @param enctype encoding types (undefined or explicit length)
     *  @param wcache pointer to write cache object, may be NULL
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition write(DcmOutputStream &outStream,
                              const E_TransferSyntax oxfer,
                              const E_EncodingType enctype,
                              DcmWriteCache *wcache);

    /** write object in XML format
     *  @param out output stream to which the XML document is written
     *  @param flags optional flag used to customize the output (see DCMTypes::XF_xxx)
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition writeXML(STD_NAMESPACE ostream &out,
                                 const size_t flags = 0);

    /** write object in JSON format
     *  @param out output stream to which the JSON document is written
     *  @param format used to format and customize the output
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition writeJson(STD_NAMESPACE ostream &out,
                                  DcmJsonFormat &format);

    /** write object in JSON format and control whether the output
     *  is encapsulated in braces
     *  @param out output stream to which the JSON document is written
     *  @param format used to format and customize the output
     *  @param printBraces true if output should be encapsulated in braces
     *  @param printNewline true if a newline should be printed after a closing brace
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition writeJsonExt(STD_NAMESPACE ostream &out,
                                  DcmJsonFormat &format,
                                  OFBool printBraces,
                                  OFBool printNewline);

    /** special write method for creation of digital signatures
     *  @param outStream DICOM output stream
     *  @param oxfer output transfer syntax
     *  @param enctype encoding types (undefined or explicit length)
     *  @param wcache pointer to write cache object, may be NULL
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition writeSignatureFormat(DcmOutputStream &outStream,
                                             const E_TransferSyntax oxfer,
                                             const E_EncodingType enctype,
                                             DcmWriteCache *wcache);

    /** returns true if the object contains an element with Unknown VR at any nesting level
     *  @return true if the object contains an element with Unknown VR, false otherwise
     */
    virtual OFBool containsUnknownVR() const;

    /** check if this object contains non-ASCII characters at any nesting level. Please note
     *  that this check is pretty simple and only works for single-byte character sets that
     *  do include the 7-bit ASCII codes, e.g. for the ISO 8859 family. In other words: All
     *  character codes below 128 are considered to be ASCII codes and all others are
     *  considered to be non-ASCII.
     *  @param checkAllStrings if true, also check elements with string values not affected
     *    by SpecificCharacterSet (0008,0005). By default, only check PN, LO, LT, SH, ST,
     *    UC and UT.
     *  @return true if object contains non-ASCII characters, false otherwise
     */
    virtual OFBool containsExtendedCharacters(const OFBool checkAllStrings = OFFalse);

    /** check if this object is affected by SpecificCharacterSet at any nesting level.
     *  In detail, it is checked whether this object contains any data elements that
     *  according to their VR are affected by the SpecificCharacterSet (0008,0005)
     *  element. This is true for the following VRs: PN, LO, LT, SH, ST, UC and UT
     *  @return true if object is affected by SpecificCharacterSet, false otherwise
     */
    virtual OFBool isAffectedBySpecificCharacterSet() const;

    /** mode specifying whether the SpecificCharacterSet (0008,0005) element should be
     *  checked by convertCharacterSet() or not, i.e.\ whether this element might be
     *  present on this dataset-level. This method is reimplemented in derived classes.
     *  @return always returns OFFalse, i.e.\ SpecificCharacterSet should not be checked
     */
    virtual OFBool checkForSpecificCharacterSet() const { return OFFalse; }

    /** convert all element values that are contained in this item and that are affected
     *  by SpecificCharacterSet from the given source character set to the given
     *  destination character set. The defined terms for a particular character set can
     *  be found in the DICOM standard, e.g. "ISO_IR 100" for ISO 8859-1 (Latin 1) or
     *  "ISO_IR 192" for Unicode in UTF-8. An empty string denotes the default character
     *  repertoire, which is ASCII (7-bit). If multiple values are given for 'fromCharset'
     *  (separated by a backslash) code extension techniques are used and escape sequences
     *  may be encountered in the source string to switch between the specified character
     *  sets.
     *  @note The conversion code does not perform a thorough validation of the strings to
     *    be converted. For example, characters that are permitted in the source character
     *    set but forbidden in DICOM (such as byte positions 0x80-0x9F in ISO_IR 100) may
     *    be converted without warning or error.
     *  @param fromCharset name of the source character set(s) used for the conversion
     *  @param toCharset name of the destination character set used for the conversion.
     *    Only a single value is permitted (i.e. no code extensions).
     *  @param flags optional flag used to customize the conversion (see DCMTypes::CF_xxx)
     *  @param updateCharset if OFTrue, the SpecificCharacterSet (0008,0005) element is
     *    updated, i.e.\ the current value is either replaced or a new element is inserted
     *    or the existing element is deleted. If OFFalse the SpecificCharacterSet element
     *    remains unchanged.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition convertCharacterSet(const OFString &fromCharset,
                                            const OFString &toCharset,
                                            const size_t flags = 0,
                                            const OFBool updateCharset = OFFalse);

    /** convert all element values that are contained in this item and that are affected
     *  by SpecificCharacterSet to the given destination character set. If not disabled,
     *  the source character set is determined automatically from the value of the
     *  SpecificCharacterSet (0008,0005) element. The defined terms for the destination
     *  character set can be found in the DICOM standard, e.g. "ISO_IR 100" for ISO 8859-1
     *  (Latin 1) or "ISO_IR 192" for Unicode in UTF-8. An empty string denotes the
     *  default character repertoire, which is ASCII (7-bit).
     *  @note The conversion code does not perform a thorough validation of the strings to
     *    be converted. For example, characters that are permitted in the source character
     *    set but forbidden in DICOM (such as byte positions 0x80-0x9F in ISO_IR 100) may
     *    be converted without warning or error.
     *  @param toCharset name of the destination character set used for the conversion.
     *    Only a single value is permitted (i.e. no code extensions).
     *  @param flags optional flag used to customize the conversion (see DCMTypes::CF_xxx)
     *  @param ignoreCharset if OFTrue, the value of SpecificCharacterSet is ignored,
     *    otherwise the element value is updated. Also see checkForSpecificCharacterSet().
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition convertCharacterSet(const OFString &toCharset,
                                            const size_t flags = 0,
                                            const OFBool ignoreCharset = OFFalse);

    /** convert all element values that are contained in this item and that are affected
     *  by SpecificCharacterSet from the currently selected source character set to the
     *  currently selected destination character set.
     *  @note The conversion code does not perform a thorough validation of the strings to
     *    be converted. For example, characters that are permitted in the source character
     *    set but forbidden in DICOM (such as byte positions 0x80-0x9F in ISO_IR 100) may
     *    be converted without warning or error.
     *  @param converter character set converter to be used to convert the element values
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition convertCharacterSet(DcmSpecificCharacterSet &converter);

    /** convert all element values that are contained in this item and that are affected
     *  by SpecificCharacterSet to UTF-8 (Unicode). The value of the SpecificCharacterSet
     *  (0008,0005) element is updated, set or deleted automatically if needed. The
     *  transliteration mode is disabled, i.e. the conversion flags are explicitly set to
     *  0 - see convertCharacterSet().
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition convertToUTF8();

    /** update the SpecificCharacterSet (0008,0005) element depending on the given
     *  parameters. The current value of this element is either replaced or a new
     *  element is inserted or the existing element is deleted.
     *  @note This method is called by convertCharacterSet() and convertToUTF8() when
     *    needed, so there is usually no reason to call it directly.
     *  @param status error status of previous operations (might also be updated)
     *  @param converter character set converter used to convert element values
     */
    virtual void updateSpecificCharacterSet(OFCondition &status,
                                            const DcmSpecificCharacterSet &converter);

    /** insert a new element into the list of elements maintained by this item.
     *  The list of elements is always kept in ascending tag order.
     *  @param elem element to be inserted, must not be contained in this or
     *    any other item.  Will be deleted upon destruction of this item object.
     *  @param replaceOld if true, this element replaces any other element with
     *    the same tag which may already be contained in the item.  If false,
     *    insert fails if another element with the same tag is already present.
     *  @param checkInsertOrder if true, a warning message is sent to the console
     *    if the element is not inserted at the end of the list.  This is used
     *    in the read() method to detect datasets with out-of-order elements.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition insert(DcmElement *elem,
                               OFBool replaceOld = OFFalse,
                               OFBool checkInsertOrder = OFFalse);

    /** access an element from the item. This method returns a pointer to one
     *  of the elements in the item, and not a copy.
     *  @param num index number of element, must be < card()
     *  @return pointer to element if found, NULL if num >= card()
     */
    virtual DcmElement *getElement(const unsigned long num);

    /** this method enables a stack based, depth-first traversal of a complete
     *  hierarchical DICOM dataset (that is, classes derived from DcmItem or
     *  DcmSequenceOfItems). With each call of this method, the next object
     *  in the tree is located and marked on the stack.
     *  @param stack "cursor" for current position in the dataset. The stack
     *    will contain a pointer to each dataset, sequence, item and element
     *    from the main dataset down to the current element, and is updated
     *    upon each call to this method. An empty stack is equivalent to a stack
     *    containing a pointer to this object only.
     *  @param intoSub if true, the nextObject method will perform a hierarchical
     *    search through the dataset (depth-first), if false, only the current
     *    container object will be traversed (e.g., all elements of an item
     *    or all items of a sequence).
     *  @return EC_Normal if value length is correct, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition nextObject(DcmStack &stack,
                                   const OFBool intoSub);

    /** this method is only used in container classes,
     *  that is, DcmItem and DcmSequenceOfItems. It returns a pointer to the
     *  next object in the list AFTER the given object. If the caller passes NULL,
     *  a pointer to the first object in the list is returned. If the given object
     *  is not found, the given object is the last one in the list or the list is
     *  empty, NULL is returned.
     *  @param obj pointer to one object in the container; we are looking for the
     *    next entry after this one. NULL if looking for the first entry.
     *  @return pointer to next object in container or NULL if not found
     */
    virtual DcmObject *nextInContainer(const DcmObject *obj);

    /** remove element from list. If found, the element is not deleted but
     *  returned to the caller who is responsible for further management of the
     *  DcmElement object.
     *  @param num index number of element, must be < card()
     *  @return pointer to DcmElement if found, NULL otherwise
     */
    virtual DcmElement *remove(const unsigned long num);

    /** remove element from list. If found, the element is not deleted but
     *  returned to the caller who is responsible for further management of the
     *  DcmElement object.
     *  @param elem pointer to element (as type DcmObject *) to be removed from list
     *  @return pointer to element (as type DcmElement *) if found, NULL otherwise
     */
    virtual DcmElement *remove(DcmObject *elem);

    /** remove element from list. If found, the element is not deleted but
     *  returned to the caller who is responsible for further management of the
     *  DcmElement object.
     *  @param tag attribute tag of element to be removed
     *  @return pointer to DcmElement if found, NULL otherwise
     */
    virtual DcmElement *remove(const DcmTagKey &tag);

    /** check if this item is empty
     *  @param normalize not used for this class
     *  @return true if item is empty, i.e.\ has no elements, false otherwise
     */
    virtual OFBool isEmpty(const OFBool normalize = OFTrue);

    /** clear (remove) all attributes from item and delete them from memory.
     *  @return EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition clear();

    /** check the currently stored element value
     *  @param autocorrect correct value length if OFTrue
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if value length is correct, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition verify(const OFBool autocorrect = OFFalse );

    /** a complex, stack-based, hierarchical search method. It allows for a search
     *  for a DICOM object with a given attribute within a given container,
     *  hierarchically, from a starting position identified through a cursor stack.
     *  @param xtag the DICOM attribute tag we are searching for
     *  @param resultStack Depending on the search mode (see below), this parameter
     *     either serves as an input and output parameter, or as an output parameter
     *     only (the latter being the default). When used as an input parameter,
     *     the cursor stack defines the start position for the search within a
     *     hierarchical DICOM dataset. Upon successful return, the stack contains
     *     the position of the element found, in the form of a pointer to each dataset,
     *     sequence, item and element from the main dataset down to the found element.
     *  @param mode search mode, controls how the search stack is handled.
     *     In the default mode, ESM_fromHere, the stack is ignored on input, and
     *     the search starts in the object for which this method is called.
     *     In the other modes, the stack is used both as an input and an output
     *     parameter and defines the starting point for the search.
     *  @param searchIntoSub if true, the search will be performed hierarchically descending
     *    into the sequences and items of the dataset. If false, only the current container
     *    (sequence or item) will be traversed.
     *  @return EC_Normal if found, EC_TagNotFound if not found, an error code is something
     *    went wrong.
     */
    virtual OFCondition search(const DcmTagKey &xtag,              // in
                               DcmStack &resultStack,              // inout
                               E_SearchMode mode = ESM_fromHere,   // in
                               OFBool searchIntoSub = OFTrue );    // in

    /** this method loads all attribute values maintained by this object and
     *  all sub-objects (in case of a container such as DcmDataset) into memory.
     *  After a call to this method, the file from which a dataset was read may safely
     *  be deleted or replaced. For large files, this method may obviously allocate large
     *  amounts of memory.
     *  @return EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition loadAllDataIntoMemory();

    /** iterate over all elements and remove those element values from memory which exceed
     *  a given length and which can be loaded from file when needed again. For all other
     *  elements, nothing is done.
     *  @param maxLength maximum length (number of bytes) allowed without removing the value
     */
    virtual void compactElements(const Uint32 maxLength);

    /** This function takes care of group length and padding elements
     *  in the current element list according to what is specified in
     *  glenc and padenc. If required, this function does the following
     *  two things:
     *    a) it calculates the group length of all groups which are
     *       contained in this item and sets the calculated values
     *       in the corresponding group length elements and
     *    b) it inserts a corresponding padding element (or, in case
     *       of sequences: padding elements) with a corresponding correct
     *       size into the element list.
     *  @param glenc          Encoding type for group length; specifies what shall
     *                        be done with group length tags.
     *  @param padenc         Encoding type for padding; specifies what shall be
     *                        done with padding tags.
     *  @param xfer           The transfer syntax that shall be used.
     *  @param enctype        Encoding type for sequences; specifies how sequences
     *                        will be handled.
     *  @param padlen         The length up to which the dataset shall be padded,
     *                        if padding is desired.
     *  @param subPadlen      For sequences (i.e. sub elements), the length up to
     *                        which item shall be padded, if padding is desired.
     *  @param instanceLength Number of extra bytes added to the item/dataset
     *                        length used when computing the padding; this
     *                        parameter is for instance used to pass the length
     *                        of the file meta header from the DcmFileFormat to
     *                        the DcmDataset object.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    virtual OFCondition computeGroupLengthAndPadding(const E_GrpLenEncoding glenc,
                                                     const E_PaddingEncoding padenc = EPD_noChange,
                                                     const E_TransferSyntax xfer = EXS_Unknown,
                                                     const E_EncodingType enctype = EET_ExplicitLength,
                                                     const Uint32 padlen = 0,
                                                     const Uint32 subPadlen = 0,
                                                     Uint32 instanceLength = 0);


    /** check if an element with the given attribute tag exists in the dataset
     *  @param key tag key to be searched
     *  @param searchIntoSub if true, do hierarchical search within sequences,
     *    if false only search through this dataset
     *  @return true if tag found, false otherwise
     */
    OFBool tagExists(const DcmTagKey &key,
                     OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** check if an element with the given attribute tag exists in the dataset
     *  and has a non-empty value
     *  @param key tag key to be searched
     *  @param searchIntoSub if true, do hierarchical search within sequences,
     *    if false only search through this dataset
     *  @return true if tag found and element non-empty, false otherwise
     */
    OFBool tagExistsWithValue(const DcmTagKey &key,
                              OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /* --- findAndGet functions: find an element and get it or the value, respectively --- */

    /** find element and get a pointer to it (or copy it).
     *  The result variable 'element' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to all DICOM value representations (VR).
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param element variable in which the reference to (or copy of) the element is stored
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @param createCopy create a copy of the element if true, return a reference otherwise
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetElement(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                  DcmElement *&element,
                                  const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse,
                                  const OFBool createCopy = OFFalse);

    /** find all elements matching a particular tag and return references to them on a stack.
     *  This functions always performs a deep search (i.e. searches into sequence of items).
     *  @note Applicable to all DICOM value representations (VR).
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param resultStack stack where references to the elements are stored (added to).
     *    If no element is found, the stack is not modified (e.g. cleared).
     *  @return EC_Normal if at least one matching tag is found, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetElements(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                   DcmStack &resultStack);

    /** find element and get value as a reference to a C string. NB: The string is not copied!
     *  Since the getString() routine is called internally the resulting string reference represents
     *  the (possibly multi-valued) value as stored in the dataset, i.e. no normalization is performed.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, CS, DA, DS, DT, IS, LO, LT, PN, SH, ST, TM,
     *    UC, UI, UR, UT.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored (might be NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetString(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 const char *&value,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a reference to a C string. NB: The string is not copied!
     *  Since the getString() routine is called internally the resulting string reference represents
     *  the (possibly multi-valued) value as stored in the dataset, i.e. no normalization is performed.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL and 'length' is set to 0 if an error
     *  occurs.
     *  Please note that since the length is returned separately, the string value can contain more
     *  than one NULL byte.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, CS, DA, DS, DT, IS, LO, LT, PN, SH, ST, TM,
     *    UC, UI, UR, UT.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored (might be NULL)
     *  @param length length of the string (number of characters without the trailing NULL byte)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetString(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 const char *&value,
                                 Uint32 &length,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a C++ string (only one component).
     *  Since the getOFString() routine is called internally the resulting string is normalized, i.e.
     *  leading and/or trailing spaces are removed according to the associated value representation,
     *  or the element value is converted to a character string (for non-string VRs) - see documentation
     *  in the corresponding header file.
     *  In contrast to the above and below function only the specified component (see parameter 'pos')
     *  is returned. The result variable 'value' is automatically set to an empty string if an error
     *  occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, AT, CS, DA, DS, DT, FL, FD, IS, LO, LT, OB, OD,
     *    OF, OL, OV, OW, PN, SH, SL, SS, ST, SV, TM, UC, UI, UL, UR, US, UT, UV.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetOFString(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                   OFString &value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a C++ string (all components).
     *  Since the getOFStringArray() routine is called internally the resulting string is normalized,
     *  i.e. leading and/or trailing spaces are removed according to the associated value representation
     *  or the element values are converted to character strings (for non-string VRs) - see documentation
     *  in the corresponding header file.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to an empty string if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, AT, CS, DA, DS, DT, FL, FD, IS, LO, LT, OB, OD,
     *    OF, OL, OV, OW, PN, SH, SL, SS, ST, SV, TM, UC, UI, UL, UR, US, UT, UV.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetOFStringArray(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                        OFString &value,
                                        const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an unsigned 8-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OB.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint8(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                Uint8 &value,
                                const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of unsigned 8-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OB.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint8Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                     const Uint8 *&value,
                                     unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                     const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an unsigned 16-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OW, US.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint16(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 Uint16 &value,
                                 const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of unsigned 16-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AT, OW, US.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint16Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                      const Uint16 *&value,
                                      unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                      const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a signed 16-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SS.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSint16(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 Sint16 &value,
                                 const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of signed 16-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SS.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSint16Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                      const Sint16 *&value,
                                      unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                      const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an unsigned 32-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OL, UL.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint32(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 Uint32 &value,
                                 const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of unsigned 32-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OL, UL.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint32Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                      const Uint32 *&value,
                                      unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                      const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a signed 32-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: IS, SL.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSint32(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 Sint32 &value,
                                 const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of signed 32-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SL.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSint32Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                      const Sint32 *&value,
                                      unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                      const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an unsigned 64-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OV, UV.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint64(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 Uint64 &value,
                                 const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of unsigned 64-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OV, UV.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetUint64Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                      const Uint64 *&value,
                                      unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                      const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a signed 64-bit integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SV.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSint64(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                 Sint64 &value,
                                 const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                 const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of signed 64-bit integers.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SV.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSint64Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                      const Sint64 *&value,
                                      unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                      const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a (signed) long integer.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: IS, OL, SL, SS, UL, US.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetLongInt(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                  long int &value,
                                  const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                  const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a 32-bit floating point.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: FL, OF.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetFloat32(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                  Float32 &value,
                                  const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                  const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of 32-bit floating point values.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: FL, OF.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetFloat32Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                       const Float32 *&value,
                                       unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                       const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as a 64-bit floating point.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to zero if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: DS, FD, OD.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the element value is stored
     *  @param pos index of the value in case of multi-valued elements (0..vm-1)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetFloat64(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                  Float64 &value,
                                  const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                  const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** find element and get value as an array of 64-bit floating point values.
     *  The result variable 'value' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: FD, OD.
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param value variable in which the reference to the element value is stored
     *  @param count stores number of items in the result array (if not NULL)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetFloat64Array(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                       const Float64 *&value,
                                       unsigned long *count = NULL,
                                       const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** looks up and returns a given sequence.
     *  The result variable 'sequence' is automatically set to NULL if an error occurs
     *  (e.g. if 'seqTagKey' does not refer to a sequence attribute).
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SQ, (pixelSQ).
     *  @param seqTagKey DICOM tag specifying the sequence attribute to be searched for
     *  @param sequence variable in which the reference to (or copy of) the sequence is stored
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sub-sequences or not
     *  @param createCopy create a copy of the sequence if true, return a reference otherwise
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSequence(const DcmTagKey &seqTagKey,
                                   DcmSequenceOfItems *&sequence,
                                   const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse,
                                   const OFBool createCopy = OFFalse);

    /** looks up and returns a given sequence item, if it exists. Otherwise sets 'item'
     *  to NULL and returns EC_TagNotFound (specified sequence does not exist) or
     *  EC_IllegalParameter (specified item does not exist). Only the top-most level of
     *  the dataset/item is examined (i.e. no deep-search is performed).
     *  Please note that an instance of the DcmPixelItem class cannot be retrieved.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SQ, (pixelSQ).
     *  @param seqTagKey DICOM tag specifying the sequence attribute to be searched for
     *  @param item variable in which the reference to (or copy of) the item is stored
     *  @param itemNum number of the item to be searched for (0..n-1, -1 for last)
     *  @param createCopy create a copy of the item if true, return a reference otherwise
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndGetSequenceItem(const DcmTagKey &seqTagKey,
                                       DcmItem *&item,
                                       const signed long itemNum = 0,
                                       const OFBool createCopy = OFFalse);


    /* --- findOrCreate functions: find an element or create a new one --- */

    /** looks up the given sequence in the current dataset and returns the given item.
     *  If either the sequence or the item do not exist, they are created. If necessary,
     *  multiple empty items are inserted. Only the top-most level of the dataset/item
     *  is examined (i.e. no deep-search is performed).
     *  Please note that an instance of the DcmPixelItem class cannot be retrieved or
     *  created.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SQ, (pixelSQ).
     *  @param seqTag DICOM tag specifying the sequence attribute to be searched for
     *    (or to be created)
     *  @param item variable in which the reference to the sequence item is stored
     *  @param itemNum number of the item to be searched for (0..n-1, -1 for last,
     *    -2 for append new)
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findOrCreateSequenceItem(const DcmTag &seqTag,
                                         DcmItem *&item,
                                         const signed long itemNum = 0);

    /* --- findAndXXX functions: find an element and do something with it --- */

    /** find element, create a copy and insert it into the given destination dataset.
     *  This functions never performs a deep search (i.e. does not search into sequence
     *  of items). Empty elements are also copied. However, if the given tag is not
     *  found in the current dataset, EC_TagNotFound is returned and the destination
     *  dataset remains unchanged.
     *  @note Applicable to all DICOM value representations (VR).
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param destItem destination dataset to which the copied element is inserted
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise
     */
    OFCondition findAndInsertCopyOfElement(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                           DcmItem *destItem,
                                           const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** find element, remove it from the dataset and free the associated memory.
     *  @note Applicable to all DICOM value representations (VR).
     *  @param tagKey DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be searched for
     *  @param allOccurrences flag indicating whether to delete all occurrences of the
     *    attribute tag or the first one only (implies 'searchIntoSub' to be true)
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether to search into sequences or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndDeleteElement(const DcmTagKey &tagKey,
                                     const OFBool allOccurrences = OFFalse,
                                     const OFBool searchIntoSub = OFFalse);

    /** looks up the given sequence in the current dataset and deletes the given item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SQ, (pixelSQ).
     *  @param seqTagKey DICOM tag specifying the sequence attribute to be searched for
     *  @param itemNum number of the item to be deleted (0..n-1, -1 for last)
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition findAndDeleteSequenceItem(const DcmTagKey &seqTagKey,
                                          const signed long itemNum);


    /* --- putAndInsert functions: put value and insert new element --- */

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, AT, CS, DA, DS, DT, FL, FD, IS, LO, LT, OB,
     *    OD, OF, OL, OV, OW, PN, SH, SL, SS, ST, SV, TM, UC, UI, UL, UR, US, UT, UV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value string value to be set for the new element (might be empty or NULL).  The format
     *    of the string value is specified by the putString() method of the corresponding VR class.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertString(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const char *value,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  Please note that since the length of the string has to be specified explicitly, the string
     *  can contain more than one NULL byte.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, AT, CS, DA, DS, DT, FL, FD, IS, LO, LT, OB,
     *    OD, OF, OL, OV, OW, PN, SH, SL, SS, ST, SV, TM, UC, UI, UL, UR, US, UT, UV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value string value to be set for the new element (might be empty or NULL).  The format
     *    of the string value is specified by the putString() method of the corresponding VR class.
     *  @param length length of the string (number of characters without the trailing NULL byte)
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertString(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const char *value,
                                   const Uint32 length,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, AT, CS, DA, DS, DT, FL, FD, IS, LO, LT, OB,
     *    OD, OF, OL, OV, OW, PN, SH, SL, SS, ST, SV, TM, UC, UI, UL, UR, US, UT, UV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value string value to be set for the new element (might be empty).  The format of the
     *    string value is specified by the putOFStringArray() method of the corresponding VR class.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertOFStringArray(const DcmTag &tag,
                                          const OFString &value,
                                          const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OB, ox (polymorph OB/OW), px (pixel data).
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element (might be NULL)
     *  @param count number of values (= bytes in this case) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint8Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                       const Uint8 *value,
                                       const unsigned long count,
                                       const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: US, xs (US or SS).
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint16(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const Uint16 value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AT, OW, US, ox (polymorph OB/OW), px (pixel data),
     *    xs (US or SS).
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element (might be NULL)
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint16Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                        const Uint16 *value,
                                        const unsigned long count,
                                        const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SS, xs (US or SS).
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertSint16(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const Sint16 value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SS, xs (US or SS).
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertSint16Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                        const Sint16 *value,
                                        const unsigned long count,
                                        const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OL, UL.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint32(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const Uint32 value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OL, UL.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint32Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                       const Uint32 *value,
                                       const unsigned long count,
                                       const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SL.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertSint32(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const Sint32 value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SL.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertSint32Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                        const Sint32 *value,
                                        const unsigned long count,
                                        const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OV, UV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint64(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const Uint64 value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: OV, UV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertUint64Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                       const Uint64 *value,
                                       const unsigned long count,
                                       const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertSint64(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const Sint64 value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertSint64Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                        const Sint64 *value,
                                        const unsigned long count,
                                        const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: FL, OF.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertFloat32(const DcmTag &tag,
                                    const Float32 value,
                                    const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                    const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: FL, OF.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertFloat32Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                         const Float32 *value,
                                         const unsigned long count,
                                         const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: DS, FD, OD
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertFloat64(const DcmTag &tag,
                                    const Float64 value,
                                    const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                    const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: FD, OD.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param count number of values (not bytes!) to be copied from 'value'
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertFloat64Array(const DcmTag &tag,
                                         const Float64 *value,
                                         const unsigned long count,
                                         const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** create a new element, put specified value to it and insert the element into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AT.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param value value to be set for the new element
     *  @param pos index of the value to be set (0..vm). A value can be appended to
     *    the end of or inserted within the existing value field.
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition putAndInsertTagKey(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const DcmTagKey &value,
                                   const unsigned long pos = 0,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /* --- insertXXX functions: insert new element --- */

    /** create a new element (with no value) and insert it into the dataset/item.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: AE, AS, AT, CS, DA, DS, DT, FL, FD, IS, LO, LT,
     *    OB, OD, OF, OL, OV, OW, PN, SH, SL, SQ, SS, ST, SV, TM, UC, UI, UL, UR, US, UT, UV.
     *  @param tag DICOM tag specifying the attribute to be created
     *  @param replaceOld flag indicating whether to replace an existing element or not
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise.
     */
    OFCondition insertEmptyElement(const DcmTag &tag,
                                   const OFBool replaceOld = OFTrue);

    /** looks up the given sequence in the current dataset and inserts the given item.
     *  If the sequence does not exist, it is created. If necessary, multiple empty items
     *  are inserted before the specified item position. Only the top-most level of the
     *  dataset/item is examined (i.e. no deep-search is performed).
     *  Please note that an instance of the DcmPixelItem class cannot be inserted.
     *  @note Applicable to the following VRs: SQ, (pixelSQ).
     *  @param seqTag DICOM tag specifying the sequence attribute to be searched for
     *    (or to be created)
     *  @param item item to be inserted into the sequence, must not be contained in this
     *    or any other sequence. Will be deleted upon destruction of the sequence object.
     *  @param itemNum position of the item (0..n-1, -1 = before last, -2 = after last)
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error otherwise (delete 'item' manually!).
     */
    OFCondition insertSequenceItem(const DcmTag &seqTag,
                                   DcmItem *item,
                                   const signed long itemNum = -2);

    /** creates new DICOM element from given attribute tag.
     *  Creation of unknown attributes (e.g. private tag not being registered
     *  in the dictionary) will result in a DcmElement instance of derived type
     *  DcmOtherByteOtherWord.
     *  @param tag attribute tag of the element to be created
     *  @param privateCreator private creator identifier of the element, if element
     *    tag is private (default: NULL, i.e. non-private DICOM standard tag)
     *  @return pointer to newly created element upon success, NULL pointer otherwise
     *
     */
     static DcmElement *newDicomElement(const DcmTagKey &tag,
                                        const char *privateCreator = NULL);

    /** creates new DICOM element from given attribute tag.
     *  Creation of unknown attributes (e.g. private tag not being registered
     *  in the dictionary) will result in a DcmElement instance of derived type
     *  DcmOtherByteOtherWord.
     *  @param newElement pointer to newly created element returned in this parameter
     *    upon success, NULL pointer otherwise
     *  @param tag attribute tag of the element to be created
     *  @param privateCreator private creator identifier of the element, if element
     *    tag is private (default: NULL, i.e. non-private DICOM standard tag)
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise
     */
    static OFCondition newDicomElement(DcmElement *&newElement,
                                       const DcmTagKey &tag,
                                       const char *privateCreator = NULL);

    /** creates new DICOM element from given attribute tag and VR.
     *  Creation of unknown attributes (e.g. private tag not being registered
     *  in the dictionary) will result in a DcmElement instance of derived type
     *  DcmOtherByteOtherWord.
     *  @param newElement pointer to newly created element returned in this parameter
     *    upon success, NULL pointer otherwise
     *  @param tag attribute tag and VR of the element to be created
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise
     */
     static OFCondition newDicomElementWithVR(DcmElement *&newElement,
                                              const DcmTag &tag);

  protected:

    /// the list of elements maintained by this object
    DcmList *elementList;

    /** flag used during suspended I/O. Indicates whether the last element
     *  was completely or only partially read/written during the last call
     *  to read/write.
     */
    OFBool lastElementComplete;

    /** used during reading. Contains the position in the stream where
     *  the item started (needed for calculating the remaining number of
     *  bytes available for a fixed-length item).
     */
    offile_off_t fStartPosition;

    /** This function reads tag and length information from inStream and
     *  returns this information to the caller. When reading information,
     *  the transfer syntax which was passed is accounted for. If the
     *  transfer syntax shows an explicit value representation, the data
     *  type of this object is also read from the stream. In general, this
     *  function follows the rules which are specified in the DICOM standard
     *  (see DICOM standard (year 2000) part 5, section 7) (or the corresponding
     *  section in a later version of the standard) concerning the encoding
     *  of a dataset.
     *  @param inStream  The stream which contains the information.
     *  @param xfer      The transfer syntax which was used to encode the
     *                   information in inStream.
     *  @param tag       Contains in the end the tag that was read.
     *  @param length    Contains in the end the length value that was read.
     *  @param bytesRead Contains in the end the amount of bytes which were
     *                   read from inStream.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    OFCondition readTagAndLength(DcmInputStream &inStream,       // inout
                                 const E_TransferSyntax xfer,    // in
                                 DcmTag &tag,                    // out
                                 Uint32 &length,                 // out
                                 Uint32 &bytesRead);             // out

    /** This function creates a new DcmElement object on the basis of the newTag
     *  and newLength information which was passed, inserts this new element into
     *  elementList, reads the actual data value which belongs to this element
     *  (attribute) from the inStream and also assigns this information to the
     *  object which was created at the beginning.
     *  @param inStream      The stream which contains the information.
     *  @param newTag        The tag of the element of which the information is
     *                       being read.
     *  @param newLength     The length of the information which is being read.
     *  @param xfer          The transfer syntax which was used to encode the
     *                       information in inStream.
     *  @param glenc         Encoding type for group length. Specifies what will
     *                       be done with group length tags.
     *  @param maxReadLength Maximum read length for reading the attribute value.
     *  @return status, EC_Normal if successful, an error code otherwise
     */
    OFCondition readSubElement(DcmInputStream &inStream,         // inout
                               DcmTag &newTag,                   // inout
                               const Uint32 newLength,           // in
                               const E_TransferSyntax xfer,      // in
                               const E_GrpLenEncoding glenc,     // in
                               const Uint32 maxReadLength = DCM_MaxReadLength);

    /** This function reads the first 6 bytes from the input stream and determines
     *  the transfer syntax which was used to code the information in the stream.
     *  The decision is based on two questions: a) Did we encounter a valid tag?
     *  and b) Do the last 2 bytes which were read from the stream represent a valid
     *  VR? In certain special cases, where the transfer syntax cannot be determined
     *  without doubt, we want to guess the most likely transfer syntax (see code).
     *  @param inStream The stream which contains the coded information.
     *  @return The transfer syntax which was determined.
     */
    E_TransferSyntax checkTransferSyntax(DcmInputStream &inStream);

    /** check whether the given tag requires some special handling regarding the VR
     *  (i.e.\ in case it is undefined and multiple values are possible). If required,
     *  the VR of the given element tag is then updated according to the DICOM
     *  standard, e.g. the VR of PixelPaddingValue (if undefined) is set to 'SS' or
     *  'US' depending on the value of PixelRepresentation.
     *  @param item dataset or item that can be used to lookup other element values
     *  @param tag tag of the element to be checked and updated (if required)
     *  @return OFTrue if the VR has changed, OFFalse otherwise
     */
    OFBool checkAndUpdateVR(DcmItem &item,
                            DcmTag &tag);

    /** creates new DICOM element from given attribute tag.
     *  Helper function used by DICOM parser (friend of this class) and thus
     *  hidden from the public interface. DcmItem's readSubElement() uses
     *  this function when reading new elements from input data. This method
     *  internally sets the length of the new element, but does not allocate
     *  any memory for the element's value. Thus subsequent access to an element
     *  created by this method can lead to crashes. DcmItem instead initializes
     *  the value itself a bit later during the read process.
     *  @param newElement pointer to newly created element returned in this
     *    parameter upon success, NULL pointer otherwise
     *  @param tag attribute tag of the element to be created. VR of tag may be
     *    updated within the method.
     *  @param length attribute value length of the element to be created
     *  @param privateCreatorCache cache object for private creator elements
     *    in the current dataset
     *  @param readAsUN flag indicating whether parser is currently handling
     *    UN element that must be read in implicit VR little endian; updated
     *    upon return
     *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise
     */
    static OFCondition newDicomElement(DcmElement *&newElement,
                                       DcmTag &tag,
                                       const Uint32 length,
                                       DcmPrivateTagCache *privateCreatorCache,
                                       OFBool& readAsUN);

  private:

    /** helper function for search(). May only be called if elementList is non-empty.
     *  Performs hierarchical search for given tag and pushes pointer of sub-element
     *  on result stack if found
     *  @param tag tag key to be searched
     *  @param resultStack upon successful return, pointer to element pushed onto this stack
     *  @param searchIntoSub flag indicating whether recursive search is desired
     *  @return EC_Normal if tag found and stack modified, EC_TagNotFound if tag not found
     *    and stack unmodified
     */
    OFCondition searchSubFromHere(const DcmTagKey &tag,          // in
                                  DcmStack &resultStack,         // inout
                                  OFBool searchIntoSub );        // in

    /** helper function that interprets the given pointer as a pointer to an
     *  array of two characters and checks whether these two characters form
     *  a valid standard DICOM VR.
     *  @param atposition pointer to array of (at least) two bytes interpreted as VR
     *  @return true if standard VR, false otherwise
     */
    static OFBool foundVR(const Uint8* atposition);

    /// cache for private creator tags and identifiers
    DcmPrivateTagCache privateCreatorCache;
};

/** Checks whether left hand side item is smaller than right hand side
 *  item. Uses DcmItem's compare() method in order to perform the
 *  comparison. See DcmItem::compare() for details.
 *  @param lhs left hand side of the comparison
 *  @param rhs right hand side of the comparison
 *  @return OFTrue if lhs is smaller than rhs, OFFalse otherwise
 */
inline OFBool operator< (const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs)
{
  return ( lhs.compare(rhs) < 0 );
}

/** Checks whether left hand side item is greater than right hand side
 *  item. Uses DcmItem's compare() method in order to perform the
 *  comparison. See DcmItem::compare() for details.
 *  @param lhs left hand side of the comparison
 *  @param rhs right hand side of the comparison
 *  @return OFTrue if lhs is greater than rhs, OFFalse otherwise
 */
inline OFBool operator> (const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs)
{
  return rhs < lhs;
}

/** Checks whether left hand side item is smaller than or equal to right hand
 *  side item. Uses DcmItem's compare() method in order to perform the
 *  comparison. See DcmItem::compare() for details.
 *  @param lhs left hand side of the comparison
 *  @param rhs right hand side of the comparison
 *  @return OFTrue if lhs is smaller than rhs or both are equal, OFFalse
 *          otherwise
 */
inline OFBool operator<=(const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs)
{
  return !(lhs > rhs);
}

/** Checks whether left hand side element is greater than or equal to right hand
 *  side element. Uses DcmElement's compare() method in order to perform the
 *  comparison. See DcmElement::compare() for details.
 *  @param lhs left hand side of the comparison
 *  @param rhs right hand side of the comparison
 *  @return OFTrue if lhs is greater than rhs or both are equal, OFFalse
 *          otherwise
 */
inline OFBool operator>=(const DcmItem& lhs, const DcmItem& rhs)
{
  return !(lhs < rhs);
}

//
// SUPPORT FUNCTIONS
//


/** helper function for DcmElement::nextObject.
 *  hierarchically traverses all datasets/items after the position indicated by the call stack
 *  @param st stack
 *  @return EC_Normal upon success, an error code otherwise
 */
DCMTK_DCMDATA_EXPORT OFCondition nextUp(DcmStack &st);


#endif // DCITEM_H
