Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!pasteur!ucbvax!SMITH.BITNET!MANAGER
From: MANAGER@SMITH.BITNET (Mary Malmros)
Newsgroups: comp.os.vms
Subject: question on patterns and pattern operators in TPU
Message-ID: <8803130845.AA26680@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>
Date: 11 Mar 88 12:41:00 GMT
Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 24

I would like some clarification about patterns and pattern operators in TPU;
specifically, the | operator.  If I am interpreting the TPU manual correctly,
the line

     PAT := ' ' | LINE_BEGIN;

ought to make a pattern PAT that will match on either a space or a
beginning-of-line.  If, however, I follow this line with the lines

     WORDSTART := SEARCH (PAT, REVERSE);
     POSITION (WORDSTART);

I always go to a space and never to the beginning of a line, even when
the beginning of a line is closer.

Help please, gurus?


Mary Malmros
Systems Manager
Center for Academic Computing
Smith College
Northampton, MA   01063
(413) 584-2700 x3073
MANAGER@SMITH.BITNET