Re: [xsl] XML-to-XML recursive template handling

[Wendell Piez <wapiez@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dear Lynne,

I don't know the NLM tool, so I'm guessing a bit.

In general, however, with this sort of problem you have two choices:

1. Pipeline. Move the elements out of the fn-group (and perform other 
modifications) and then clean up (for example, removing an empty 
fn-group) in a separate process. This can be done either at the "macro" 
level (the entire document) or (in XSLT 2.0) the "micro" level (just the 
fn-group).

Or 2. Write your code to recognize an fn-group from which all fn 
elements will be moved, and not process it.

Your code shows signs that you are trying to achieve something like a 
micropipeline in XSLT 1.0. In simply cases (such as yours) this is not 
impossible, although it entails the XSLT 1.0 version of (as it were) 
standing on your hands.

So one thing to consider is whether you can't modify your general 
approach; either use XSLT 2.0, or use a pipeline processor (such as 
XProc) or pipeline the old-fashioned way (pipeline the entire document 
not just the fn-group element). Having mastered these methods, this kind 
of problem will be much easier going forward.

Assuming you don't have the means or resources to do that, looking at 
your code, there are a couple of odd things:

<xsl:template match="fn-group">
  <xsl:param name="node"><xsl:apply-templates/></xsl:param>
  <!-- A parameter is declared and the results of applying templates
       to the children of the fn-group are bound to it.
       (Why a parameter? is this ever overridden from elsewhere?) -->

  <!-- Next, we copy the fn-group if it has fn children, and inside, we
       process the fn children -->
  <xsl:if test="fn">
    <fn-group>
      <xsl:for-each select="fn">
        <!-- code elided here. Each fn is either copied, or it isn't -->
      </xsl:for-each>
    </fn-group>

    <!-- next we call the emptyfn template, passing $node in -->
    <xsl:call-template name="emptyfn">
      <xsl:with-param name="node" select="$node"/>
    </xsl:call-template>
  </xsl:if>
</xsl:template>

<xsl:template name="emptyfn">
  <!-- but 'emptyfn' is a no-op. If $node tests true, it ...
       does nothing -->
  <xsl:param name="node"/>
  <xsl:if test="not($node)"/>
</xsl:template>

Remember I'm guessing a little, but what I think you want is something 
more like this:

<xsl:template match="fn-group">
  <xsl:variable name="fn-results">
    ... for-each logic goes here ... or do the same thing, more
    gracefully, with templates ...
  </xsl:variable>
  <xsl:if test="normalize-space($fn-results">
    <fn-group>
      <xsl:copy-of select="fn-results"/>
    </fn-group>
  </xsl:if>
</xsl:template>

This is effectively an XSLT 1.0 "poor man's" version of a proper 
micropipeline such as we could do in XSLT 2.0. Basically it processes 
the fn children of the fn-group and binds the results to a variable. The 
results are an XSLT 1.0 temporary tree: it either contains copies of the 
fn elements, or it doesn't (if there were none we wanted to copy).

If the latter, the temporary tree will be cast to an empty string by the 
normalize-space() test in the subsequent xsl:if, and no fn-group will be 
created. If the set of fn elements resulted in non-whitespace content, 
however, this tests true, and they are copied in, inside an fn-group.

This might be all there is to it ... or maybe not, if there are details 
we have missed.

In XSLT 2.0 you could do the same thing, only more properly and more 
robustly. In particular, here the XSLT 1.0 has to make assumptions such 
as that the fn elements are going to have string values.

I hope this helps. Let us know.

Cheers,
Wendell

--
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Wendell Piez                            mailto:wapiez@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mulberry Technologies, Inc.                http://www.mulberrytech.com
17 West Jefferson Street                    Direct Phone: 301/315-9635
Suite 207                                          Phone: 301/315-9631
Rockville, MD  20850                                 Fax: 301/315-8285
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