From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.io!.POSTED.ciao.gmane.io!not-for-mail From: Drew Adams Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.bugs Subject: bug#41006: 26.3; regular expressions documentation Date: Wed, 6 May 2020 20:17:11 -0700 (PDT) Message-ID: References: <64E29F93-5A92-4F8D-9BA2-C6F14AEC2F64@acm.org> <824a1116-8e91-409f-95ff-69ef168a359d@default> <87k11s221z.fsf@stefankangas.se> <032f1835-d4ca-47c7-a8bb-3f4628a820a8@default> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Injection-Info: ciao.gmane.io; posting-host="ciao.gmane.io:159.69.161.202"; logging-data="87592"; mail-complaints-to="usenet@ciao.gmane.io" Cc: mattiase@acm.org, stefan@marxist.se, 41006@debbugs.gnu.org, rtm443x@googlemail.com To: rms@gnu.org Original-X-From: bug-gnu-emacs-bounces+geb-bug-gnu-emacs=m.gmane-mx.org@gnu.org Thu May 07 05:18:11 2020 Return-path: Envelope-to: geb-bug-gnu-emacs@m.gmane-mx.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([209.51.188.17]) by ciao.gmane.io with esmtps (TLS1.2:ECDHE_RSA_AES_256_GCM_SHA384:256) (Exim 4.92) (envelope-from ) id 1jWX33-000Mfz-NK for geb-bug-gnu-emacs@m.gmane-mx.org; 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Thu, 07 May 2020 03:17:16 +0000 Original-Received: from pps.filterd (aserp3020.oracle.com [127.0.0.1]) by aserp3020.oracle.com (8.16.0.42/8.16.0.42) with SMTP id 0473BUaM177916; Thu, 7 May 2020 03:17:15 GMT Original-Received: from userv0121.oracle.com (userv0121.oracle.com [156.151.31.72]) by aserp3020.oracle.com with ESMTP id 30sjnmp6kv-1 (version=TLSv1.2 cipher=ECDHE-RSA-AES256-GCM-SHA384 bits=256 verify=OK); Thu, 07 May 2020 03:17:15 +0000 Original-Received: from abhmp0012.oracle.com (abhmp0012.oracle.com [141.146.116.18]) by userv0121.oracle.com (8.14.4/8.13.8) with ESMTP id 0473HCoV012726; Thu, 7 May 2020 03:17:12 GMT In-Reply-To: X-Priority: 3 X-Mailer: Oracle Beehive Extensions for Outlook 2.0.1.9.1 (1003210) [OL 16.0.4993.0 (x86)] X-Proofpoint-Virus-Version: vendor=nai engine=6000 definitions=9613 signatures=668687 X-Proofpoint-Spam-Details: rule=notspam policy=default score=0 mlxscore=0 adultscore=0 phishscore=0 mlxlogscore=818 bulkscore=0 malwarescore=0 spamscore=0 suspectscore=1 classifier=spam adjust=0 reason=mlx scancount=1 engine=8.12.0-2003020000 definitions=main-2005070022 X-Proofpoint-Virus-Version: vendor=nai engine=6000 definitions=9613 signatures=668687 X-Proofpoint-Spam-Details: rule=notspam policy=default score=0 bulkscore=0 mlxscore=0 lowpriorityscore=0 spamscore=0 adultscore=0 clxscore=1015 suspectscore=1 priorityscore=1501 malwarescore=0 mlxlogscore=845 phishscore=0 impostorscore=0 classifier=spam adjust=0 reason=mlx scancount=1 engine=8.12.0-2003020000 definitions=main-2005070022 X-BeenThere: debbugs-submit@debbugs.gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.18 Precedence: list X-BeenThere: bug-gnu-emacs@gnu.org List-Id: "Bug reports for GNU Emacs, the Swiss army knife of text editors" List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: bug-gnu-emacs-bounces+geb-bug-gnu-emacs=m.gmane-mx.org@gnu.org Original-Sender: "bug-gnu-emacs" Xref: news.gmane.io gmane.emacs.bugs:179860 Archived-At: > > But I think `Regexp Search' should come before > > `Regular Expressions'. >=20 > To me, what a regular expression consists of > is logically prior to how to search for one. > You can't search for one > unless you can write one. I also said (in a different msg): Info about _use_ before reference info about _what_ they are. That's possible, and probably more helpful. and But yes, the order between "use" (search & match) and "what" isn't all that important, especially since each is itself a big topic with multiple subtopics. The main thing is grouping like with like, "together" Logically, as you say, in-depth/practical use of regexps to search/match requires understanding regexps, including soem details of their syntax and behavior. It doesn't follow that general use of regexps to search/match ("how") can't usefully be introduced before the full "what". You saw quite a lot about the use of a car before you had any good knowledge of the relations of its parts, how it and they function, or the details of how to drive. To really know how to drive, yes, you need to know something about the relations among engine, brakes, lights, signals, etc. But to get the overall picture of how to drive, no - you mainly need to know what a car is for, and have some experience of seeing a car driven. Anyway, I have no druthers here. I was trying to help with Stefan K's problem: he was _looking_ for how-to-use regexps, he already had knowledge about regexps (from other languages), and when trying to find the how-to-use info he was plunged into the what-regexps-are info, which he didn't care about (at that point).