Subject: Re: [xsl] Trimming (formatting-only) leading tabs/spaces from XSLT - issues? From: Philip Fearon <pgfearo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Date: Tue, 7 Jun 2011 15:26:22 +0100 |
This wouldn't ever be perfect, but there's a large set of rules that could be used to determine formatting-only whitespace. The following set is a distilled version: >From the XML context: 1. Outside mixed-content 2. Outside where xsl:space "preserve" is in scope 3. Outside defined elements such as 'pre' and 'text' 4. If it precedes an attribute name beginning a new line 5. If it precedes an attribute value on a new line >From text context: 4. Where the number of characters found are (within a defined margin) is consistent with the current nesting-level - a pattern can normally be established 5. Where irregular leading whitespace is found on consecutive lines in a node value The approach would be progressive where, on first load a minimal set of 'obvious' formatting is removed, then further options provided to the developer that steadily impose a more rigorous filtering Phil Fearon http://qutoric On Tue, Jun 7, 2011 at 2:22 PM, Dimitre Novatchev <dnovatchev@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > How do you know that the spaces are "formatting-only"? > > I have heard about cases (mostly with HTML) where this cannot be safely assumed. > > > -- > Cheers, > Dimitre Novatchev > --------------------------------------- > Truly great madness cannot be achieved without significant intelligence. > --------------------------------------- > To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk > ------------------------------------- > Never fight an inanimate object > ------------------------------------- > You've achieved success in your field when you don't know whether what > you're doing is work or play > ------------------------------------- > Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. > ------------------------------------- > I finally figured out the only reason to be alive is to enjoy it. > > > > On Tue, Jun 7, 2011 at 5:47 AM, Philip Fearon <philipfearon@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: >> Say, (hypothetically) there was an XSLT-based system that included an >> editor that (if used) needed to trim leading tabs/spaces from XSLT >> when first loading a file, so as to provide a continously formatted >> view of the XSLT code as it was edited. >> >> Provided that this was done relatively reliably (i.e. without trimming >> significant tab and space characters) and predictably, would this >> cause significant problems in an XSLT development, test or production >> environment? >> >> So, would other editors, viewers, diff-tools, version-control systems, >> auto-documentation systems etc. be adversely affected? If such >> formatting characters needed to be added again, would it be best just >> to add them when required (letting the consumer choose the formatting >> style)? >> >> I ask, because the popular consensus seems to be that trimming >> non-XSLT code of formatting characters in this way would be a major >> issue. This is because of established working methods and tools that >> don't/won't/can't tolerate changes to whitespace (this seems to be >> quite an emotive issue).Now, whitespace has added significance (an >> understatement I think) in XML/XSLT systems. My experience (such that >> it is) in XSLT is that working methods and tools have therefore >> evolved to manage whitespace (removing it, comparing it, adding it, or >> ignoring it) more effectively than text-only tools, trimming XSLT of >> tabs/spaces therefore shouldn't be a problem and may even provide more >> flexibility, does this hold up in the wider XSLT world? >> >> Phil Fearon >> http://qutoric.com
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