XML 1.0 - query - ambiguous syntax in choice/seq ?

   Date: Sun, 03 May 1998 18:40:34 -0700
   From: Tim Bray <tbray@textuality.com>

   At 07:42 PM 5/3/98 EDT, Kent M Pitman wrote:
   >Regarding syntax rules [48]-[50], if I'm parsing for a cp and see the text:
   >
   > (Foo)*
   >
   >is the "(Foo)" a choice or a seq?  Unless there is a clarification 
   >somewhere, it seems to me to match both.  And I'm uncomfortable 
   >picking one or the other arbitrarily.

   It doesn't make any difference in the language matched by the 
   content model; so you can pick either without loss of information.
    -Tim

I have to say that I don't find this a satisfying response at all.

One of the operations one does on parsed structure is to compare it,
for example by a test suite to determine if one has a correct parse.
In order to do that, there must be representations for each datum.  If
the representation can be either, it substantially complicates the
equality predicates.

Please allow my request for clarification and correction to stand.
I feel strongly that an ambiguity of this form is requires repair.
 --Kent

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Received on Sunday, 3 May 1998 22:57:24 UTC