RE: ORA-FO-UNORDERED 15.1.15 fn:unordered

There is a difference though.

Fn:unorder() is a function since the semantics of it has no side-effect.
It takes a sequence and returns it in a non-deterministic order. So it
is a non-deterministic function.

That an optimizer can choose to recognize the function and perform some
optimizations is just an implementation detail that does not affect the
semantics (even though it is the reason why this function exists).

Michael

> -----Original Message-----
> From: public-qt-comments-request@w3.org [mailto:public-qt-comments-
> request@w3.org] On Behalf Of Dimitre Novatchev
> Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2003 11:40 AM
> To: public-qt-comments@w3.org
> Subject: RE: ORA-FO-UNORDERED 15.1.15 fn:unordered
> 
> 
> > But then, please, don't call it a function if it is not a
> > function. (Dimitre, help! ;-) )
> 
> 
> It is a function, the same way as randomize-node-set() (from FXSL) is
a
> function, the same way as random-sequence() is a function.
> 
> Really, this is a rather strange function and I suspect that we could
talk
> about it having kinda side effect because it gives some hint to the
> processor, which is in fact interacting with the outside world.
> 
> Probably I'm wrong, as there is no obvious change of states or
sequencing.
> 
> Probably, it would not seem so weird if there was a function
> 
>   optimizer()
> 
> and "unordered" was a possible value of one of its parameters.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> =====
> Cheers,
> 
> Dimitre Novatchev.
> http://fxsl.sourceforge.net/ -- the home of FXSL
> 
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Received on Thursday, 25 September 2003 15:40:05 UTC