RE: Establishing Defaults for Omitted Elements

Try select="(a | $menuDefaults/a)[last()]"

This assumes the defaults are at the start of the file.

Michael Kay

# -----Original Message-----
# From: owner-xsl-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:owner-xsl-
# list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Dan Diebolt
# Sent: 03 March 2004 17:29
# To: xsl-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
# Subject:  Establishing Defaults for Omitted Elements
# 
# I have an XML configuration file for which I am defining the structure of
# (ie I
# can change it) and in relevant part currently looks like this:
# 
# <Items>
#  <Defaults>
#   <a>0</a>
#   <b>1</b>
#  </Defaults>
#  <Item>
#   <a>1</a>
#  </Item>
#  <Item>
#   <b>2</b>
#  </Item>
# </Items>
# 
# The <Defaults> element is intended to set the default value of elements
# <a> and
# <b> if these elements are absent in any of the subsequent <Item>'s.
# 
# When I process the <Item>'s and need to grab the value of <a> or <b>, I am
# currently using code like this:
# 
# 
# <xsl:template match="Item">
#  <xsl:variable name="Defaults" select="../Defaults"/>
# 
#  <!-- code use when value for <a> is needed -->
#  <xsl:choose>
#   <xsl:when test="a">
#    <xsl:value-of select="a"/>
#   </xsl:when>
#   <xsl:otherwise>
#    <xsl:value-of select="$MenuDefaults/a"/>
#   </xsl:otherwise>
#  </xsl:choose>
# 
#  <!-- code use when value for <a> is needed -->
#  <xsl:choose>
#   <xsl:when test="b">
#    <xsl:value-of select="b"/>
#   </xsl:when>
#   <xsl:otherwise>
#    <xsl:value-of select="$MenuDefaults/b"/>
#   </xsl:otherwise>
#  </xsl:choose>
# </xsl:template>
# 
# Could anyone offer a more compact way to implement a scheme like this
# (changing
# either the XML or the XSLT)? In the actual application I have 100's of
# elements
# like <a> and <b> and it is becoming a bit verbose to use the <xsl:choose>
# element in this fashion. The solution has to work with IE6. The most
# important
# feature I must retain is the ability to make hand editing of the XML
# configuration file as simple as possible (minimal typing, no attributes
# etc).
# There is currently no DTD or schema for the XML config file.
# 
# Any help would be appreciated.
# 
# 
# 
# 
# 
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 XSL-List info and archive:  http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list