Re: Axis specifers

.> If a 'note' element appeared immediately after the list element,
but your example input didn't have a note after the list element, and
your posted code only appeared to be looking at child elements of list,
not following siblings.

My bad. What I meant was if there was a note element immediately
following another note element like this:

<list>
<note>
<note>
<text>
</list>

I want both the note elements to appear above the text element. Right
now, with my code, the second NOTE element overlaps with the number 1.

  This is the reason for the statement " <xsl:if
 test="child::note">
 <xsl:apply-templates select="note" mode="list"/> </xsl:if>"

Michael's point was that teh xsl:if there is doing nothing, those lines
are equivalent to
 <xsl:apply-templates select="note" mode="list"/>

as in both cases, if there is a note, templates are applied, and if
there is not a note, templates are not applied.

Your example

  <list>
   <note><para>This is the first note.</para></note>
  <note><para>This is the second note. </para></note>
  <text><para>This is some text. </para></text>
  <note><para>This note is after the text. </para></note>
   </list>

  So, only if the <note> element appeared before the text, it will have
  to be displayed before the text element like this:

  NOTE: This is the first note.
  NOTE: This is the second note.
  1. This is some text.

doesn't seem to involve any rearrangement at all and just needs
something like

<xsl:template match="list">
<block>
<xsl:apply-templates/>
</block>
</xsl:template>

<xsl:template match="note">
<block>NOTE:
<xsl:apply-templates/>
</block>
</xsl:template>

<xsl:template match="text">
<block><xsl:number/>.
<xsl:apply-templates/>
</block>
</xsl:template>

you say
.> If a 'note' element appeared immediately after the list element,
but your example input didn't have a note after the list element, and
your posted code only appeared to be looking at child elements of list,
not following siblings.

David