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Re: Nasty XPath expressions

• To: Evan Lenz <elenz@x...>
• Subject: Re: Nasty XPath expressions
• From: Amy Lewis <amyzing@t...>
• Date: Thu, 13 Dec 2001 12:17:14 -0500
• Cc: bob mcwhirter <bob@w...>, Kelvin Yeow <whyeow@c...>, xml-dev@l...
• In-reply-to: <006e01c183e7$e0dabc40$6f87fea9@vaio>
• References: <Pine.LNX.3.96.1011213084623.18118E-100000@e...> <006e01c183e7$e0dabc40$6f87fea9@vaio>
• User-agent: Mutt/1.3.24i

On Thu, Dec 13, 2001 at 07:07:21AM -0800, Evan Lenz wrote:
>> XPath says that nodes should be returned in 'document order', which
>> becomes a non-trivial in the case of some expressions involving
>> the union operator.
>
>Actually, XPath nowhere says that nodes must be returned in document order.
>Node-sets are sets; they have no order. Whether you want to subsequently

Umm, no.

Node-sets are ordered sets.  The spec spends (too much?) time
discussing the ordering of returned sets, which depend upon the axis. 
So it isn't exactly true that they are always in document order
(particularly if you're using a complex expression that moves in
multiple axes), but it is true that the nodes are returned in the order
of encounter, as specified by the axis.  Typically, this means document
order.

They are *not* unordered sets.

Amy!
-- 
Amelia A. Lewis          alicorn@m...          amyzing@t...
But pain ... seems to me an insufficient reason not to embrace life.  Being
dead is quite painless.  Pain, like time, is going to come on regardless. 
Question is, what glorious moments can you win from life in addition to the
pain?						-- Cordelia Vorkosigan

• Follow-Ups:
  • RE: Nasty XPath expressions
    • From: "Michael Kay" <michael.h.kay@n...>
  • Re: Nasty XPath expressions
    • From: David Carlisle <davidc@n...>

• References:
  • Re: Nasty XPath expressions
    • From: bob mcwhirter <bob@w...>
  • Re: Nasty XPath expressions
    • From: "Evan Lenz" <elenz@x...>

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