A few definitions (was Re2: Filename Template)

To expand on this, general usage of the following terms could be defined as follows:

Template: A format used for describing output
Format: A way of abstractly expressing how something should look, as opposed to what the content should be
Regular Expression: A way of defining some set of matching criteria, often used for limiting or parsing input
Mask: A format used for constraining input

Hopefully, that helps!

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We are the carpenters and bricklayers of the Information Age.

The idea is a little like C++ templates, except not quite so brain-meltingly complicated. -- TheDamian, Exegesis 6

Please remember that I'm crufty and crochety. All opinions are purely mine and all code is untested, unless otherwise specified.

Comment on A few definitions (was Re2: Filename Template)

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Re: A few definitions (was Re2: Filename Template) by larsen (Parson) on Aug 07, 2003 at 16:14 UTC
Yes. And it offers me a way to expand my previous answer. You say that a template is "a format used for describing output". I'll go further, saying that a template generates a language (i.e. a set of strings). On the other hand a regular expression denotes a language, then is usable to recognize strings that belong or not to a set. Since the original question asked for a way to recognize strings in a set, I suggested to change terminology in order to be conducted to the right abstraction that Perl provides.	[reply]

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generates

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