Re: [xsl] test context node existence

[David Carlisle <davidc@xxxxxxxxx>]

> Why can't you say:
> 
> <xsl:if test="exists(foo:node)">

because if there isn't a current node evaluating foo:node is an error.
(despite a bizare thread in bugzilla currently suggesting that more or
less any error condition can be rewritten to avoid the error)

I had this problem in xq2xsl where in translating between xquery and
xslt I couldn't be sure if theer was a context node. The solution I
adopted there was to never use xslt's implicit initial context and
always use a named initial template. In cases where I would have used an
initial document instead use a global parameter. The para,eter can have
a default definition of () so you can test for that safely.

David


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