Key-Value-Coding (KVC) means accessing a property or value using a string.
id someValue = [myObject valueForKeyPath:@"foo.bar.baz"];
Which could be the same as:
id someValue = [[[myObject foo] bar] baz];
Key-Value-Observing (KVO) allows you to observe changes to a property or value.
To observe a property using KVO you would identify to property with a string; i.e., using KVC. Therefore, the observable object must be KVC compliant.
[myObject addObserver:self forKeyPath:@"foo.bar.baz" options:0 context:NULL];