CODEWITHSUNDEEP
xpathsyntaxtreeabstractabstract-syntax-tree
user3025839
user3025839

Reputation: 81

How to develop a AST(Abstract Syntax Tree) for XPath?

Could anyone teach me how to develop an AST(Abstract Syntax Tree) for XPath? Totally confused. Thanks!

Upvotes: 0

Views: 835

Answers (1)

Ira Baxter
Ira Baxter

Reputation: 95410

Using ANTLR is a fine way to get started doing this.

BUT: build something simple, like an expression parser, first. This will make sure you understand the basics. You'll likely find dozens of examples of this for ANTLR, I suspect even here on stack overflow.

After you get an expression grammar and an AST for it, then consider XPath. You'll discover this is a LOT more complicated, mostly because the definition of XPath was created by one committee, building on the giant XML construction of another committee. So your problem will be a little bit knowing how to build ASTs with parsers, and a LOT with reading all the gook that those two committees wrote to define XPath.

Upvotes: 1

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