use YAPE::Regex::Explain;
print YAPE::Regex::Explain->new(qr/(^USA|BRA|CAN)?(.*?)(XY)?$/)->expla
+in();
outputs
The regular expression:
(?-imsx:(^USA|BRA|CAN)?(.*?)(XY)?$)
matches as follows:
NODE EXPLANATION
----------------------------------------------------------------------
(?-imsx: group, but do not capture (case-sensitive)
(with ^ and $ matching normally) (with . not
matching \n) (matching whitespace and #
normally):
----------------------------------------------------------------------
( group and capture to \1 (optional
(matching the most amount possible)):
----------------------------------------------------------------------
^ the beginning of the string
----------------------------------------------------------------------
USA 'USA'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
| OR
----------------------------------------------------------------------
BRA 'BRA'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
| OR
----------------------------------------------------------------------
CAN 'CAN'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
)? end of \1 (NOTE: because you are using a
quantifier on this capture, only the LAST
repetition of the captured pattern will be
stored in \1)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
( group and capture to \2:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
.*? any character except \n (0 or more times
(matching the least amount possible))
----------------------------------------------------------------------
) end of \2
----------------------------------------------------------------------
( group and capture to \3 (optional
(matching the most amount possible)):
----------------------------------------------------------------------
XY 'XY'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
)? end of \3 (NOTE: because you are using a
quantifier on this capture, only the LAST
repetition of the captured pattern will be
stored in \3)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
$ before an optional \n, and the end of the
string
----------------------------------------------------------------------
) end of grouping
----------------------------------------------------------------------
This is then fed into the Conditional Operator (? :), selecting either the second group ((.*?)) if it matched or the whole string if it didn't. Finally, this resultant string is used as a symbolic reference. Good luck. I suspect that the author intended (^USA|BRA|CAN) to actually be ^(USA|BRA|CAN) |