Re: GitHub ·qtspecs· Repository • Labels

> 
> Can we add to this list: "Document hidden features", or maybe "Unveil hidden features"?

Improvements to the spec that help readers find information without actually changing the language fall under the "Editorial" category.

You're right that in cases like this where the language has been extended by removing restrictions rather than adding features the change can very easily be missed. And the XPath 2.0 specification (unlike XSLT 2.0) unfortunately lacked an appendix summarizing the (extensive) changes since 1.0. This kind of thing is very dependent on how much effort editors are able to put in, and how they decide their priorities. Some people argue that providing such material in online tutorials is more useful than adding to the spec: but if you want to draft an appendix summarising the changes in each major release of the specifications, I'm sure the world will be grateful for your efforts.

Michael Kay
Saxonica

> 
> One example is that since XPath 2.0 a new powerful feature was introduced that an axis step can be a function call, but even today very few people are aware of this. That this feature exists can only be proven traversing a chain of grammar rules, which most people will never do. More about this can be found here and in the subsequent thread: https://www.biglist.com/lists/lists.mulberrytech.com/xsl-list/archives/202208/msg00074.html <https://www.biglist.com/lists/lists.mulberrytech.com/xsl-list/archives/202208/msg00074.html>
> 
> There may be other such hidden gems, which by definition are difficult to find ...
> 
> Thanks,
> Dimitre
> 
> On Wed, Sep 7, 2022 at 12:34 AM Christian Grün <cg@basex.org <mailto:cg@basex.org>> wrote:
> Dear all,
> 
> As proposed by Reece, we’ve assembled sets of labels that we believe should be added to the qtspecs repository in order to better organize the variety of existing and new issues:
> 
> Language
> • XPath: XML Path Language
> • XQuery: XML Query Language
> • XSLT: XSL Transformations
> • XQFO: XPath and XQuery Functions and Operators
> 
> Priority
> • P1: high priority
> • P2: medium priority
> • P3: low priority
> 
> Scope
> • Editorial: Minor typos, wording clarification, example fixes, etc.
> • Bug: Something that does not work with the current specification that needs updating, but which is more than just fixing a typo.
> • Enhancement: Something that is not a new feature, but that modifies or improves on an existing feature (either existing in a published spec, or in a draft spec).
> • Feature: Something that introduces new functionality to the language(s) or function library
> 
> Status
> • Accepted: Will be adopted and added to the specifications.
> • Rejected: As decided in a weekly meeting. A short justification should be added in a final comment.
> 
> Trivia: The labels of a label set should be uniformly colored. The existing standard GitHub labels can be dropped.
> 
> Suggestions are welcome.
> 
> Best,
> Christian
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Cheers,
> Dimitre Novatchev
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