Re: Syntax diagram driven parser

> Perhaps you know the "railroad" diagrams of the Pascal syntax. In
> Delphi this representation is no longer used, since the actual
> grammar would require a 3D view of those diagrams, with crossing
> rails without interconnections.


You are correct about the Pascal diagrams :) I think the only reason
that Delphi doesn't use "syntax diagrams" is because they take up more
room, not because of any problems with them I don't see why a 3d view
would be required and "syntax diagrams" because any computer language
can be written as 2d diagrams.


>A graph can be very complex, perhaps recursive, and I do not see a
>general benefit from using such unrestricted graphs, as opposed to
>other unrestricted representations of a grammar.


.. "syntax diagrams" can handle recursive languages just fine with no
problems and they can be "quicker" to look at and read than text BNF
or EBNF files in most cases, can't they?


--
Paul Nicholls (Delphi 5) Live long and optimise!
  Home Page: www.southcom.com.au/~phantom

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