spirit/doc/faq.qbk
2017-12-06 21:29:43 +01:00

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[/==============================================================================
Copyright (C) 2001-2011 Joel de Guzman
Copyright (C) 2001-2011 Hartmut Kaiser
Distributed under the Boost Software License, Version 1.0. (See accompanying
file LICENSE_1_0.txt or copy at http://www.boost.org/LICENSE_1_0.txt)
===============================================================================/]
[section:faq Spirit FAQ]
[heading I'm getting multiple symbol definition errors while using Visual C++. Anything I could do about that?]
Do you see strange multiple symbol definition linker errors mentioning
`boost::mpl::failed` and `boost::spirit::qi::rule`? Then this FAQ entry might
be for you.
__mpl__ implements a macro `BOOST_MPL_ASSERT_MSG()` which essentially is a
more powerful version of static_assert. Unfortunately under certain
circumstances using this macro may lead to the aforementioned linker errors.
__spirit__ allows you to define a preprocessor constant disabling the usage
of `BOOST_MPL_ASSERT_MSG()`, while switching to `BOOST_STATIC_ASSERT()` instead.
For that you need define BOOST_SPIRIT_DONT_USE_MPL_ASSERT_MSG=1. Do this by
adding
-DBOOST_SPIRIT_DONT_USE_MPL_ASSERT_MSG=1
on the compiler command line or by inserting a
#define BOOST_SPIRIT_DONT_USE_MPL_ASSERT_MSG 1
into your code before any Spirit headers get included.
Using this trick has no adverse effects on any of the functionality of
__spirit__. The only change you might see while using this workaround is less
verbose error messages generated from static_assert.
[heading I'm very confused about the header hell in my boost/spirit directory. What's all this about?]
The boost/spirit directory currently holds two versions of the Spirit library:
__classic__ (former V1.8.x) and SpiritV2. Both are completely independent
and usually not used at the same time. Do not mix these two in the same grammar.
__classic__ evolved over years in a fairly complex directory structure:
boost/spirit/actor
boost/spirit/attribute
boost/spirit/core
boost/spirit/debug
boost/spirit/dynamic
boost/spirit/error_handling
boost/spirit/iterator
boost/spirit/meta
boost/spirit/symbols
boost/spirit/tree
boost/spirit/utility
While introducing Spirit V2 we restructured the directory structure in order to
accommodate two versions at the same time. All of __classic__ now lives in
the directory
boost/spirit/home/classic
where the directories above contain forwarding headers to the new location
allowing to maintain application compatibility. The forwarding headers issue a
warning (starting with Boost V1.38) telling the user to change their include
paths. Please expect the above directories/forwarding headers to go away soon.
This explains the need for the directory
boost/spirit/include
which contains forwarding headers as well. But this time the headers won't go
away. We encourage application writers to use only the includes contained in
this directory. This allows us to restructure the directories underneath if
needed without worrying application compatibility. Please use those files in
your application only. If it turns out that some forwarding file is missing,
please report this as a bug.
Spirit V2 is not about parsing only anymore (as __classic__). It now consists
out of 3 parts (sub-libraries): __qi__, __karma__, and __lex__. The header
files for those live in
boost/spirit/home/qi
boost/spirit/home/karma
boost/spirit/home/lex
and have forwarding headers in
boost/spirit/include
__qi__ is the direct successor to __classic__ as it implements a DSEL (domain
specific embedded language) allowing to write parsers using the syntax of C++
itself (parsers in the sense turning a sequence of bytes into an internal data
structure). It is not compatible with __classic__, the main concepts are
similar, though.
__karma__ is the counterpart to __qi__. It implements a similar DSEL but for
writing generators (i.e. the things turning internal data structures into a
sequence of bytes, most of the time - strings). __karma__ is the Yang to
__qi__'s Yin, it's almost like a mirrored picture.
__lex__ is (as the name implies) a library allowing to write lexical analyzers.
These are either usable stand alone or can be used as a front end for __qi__
parsers. If you know flex you shouldn't have problems understanding __lex__.
This library actually doesn't implement the lexer itself. All it does is to
provide an interface to pre-existing lexical analyzers. Currently it's using
Ben Hansons excellent __lexertl__ library (proposed for a Boost review, BTW) as
its underlying workhorse.
Again, don't use any of the header files underneath the boost/spirit/home
directory directly, always include files from the boost/spirit/include
directory.
The last bit missing is __phoenix__ (which currently still lives under the
Spirit umbrella, but already has been accepted as a Boost library, so it will
move away). __phoenix__ is a library allowing to write functional style C++,
which is interesting in itself, but as it initially has been developed for
Spirit, it is nicely integrated and very useful when it comes to writing
semantic actions. I think using the boost/spirit/include/phoenix_... headers
will be safe in the future as well, as we will probably redirect to the
Boost.Phoenix headers as soon as these are available.
[heading Why doesn't my symbol table work in a `no_case` directive?]
In order to perform case-insensitive parsing (using __qi_no_case__) with a
symbol table (i.e. use a __qi_symbols__
parser in a `no_case` directive), that symbol table needs to be filled with
all-lowercase contents. Entries containing one or more uppercase characters
will not match any input.
[heading I'm getting a compilation error mentioning `boost::function` and/or
`boost::function4`. What does this mean?]
If you are using Visual C++ and have an error like:
[pre
error C2664: \'bool boost::function4<R,T0,T1,T2,T3>::operator ()(T0,T1,T2,T3) const\' :
cannot convert parameter 4 from '...' to '...'
]
or you are using GCC and have an error like:
[pre
error: no match for call to '(const boost::function<bool ()(...)>) (...)'
note: candidates are: ... boost::function4<R,T1,T2,T3,T4>::operator()(T0,T1,T2,T3) const [with ...\]
]
then this FAQ entry may help you.
The definition of a __rule__ or __grammar__ may contain a skip parser type. If
it does, it means that non-terminal can only be used with a skip parser of a
compatible type. The error above arises when this is not the case, i.e.:
* a non-terminal defined with a skip parser type is used without a skip parser;
for example, a rule with a skip parser type is used inside a `lexeme`
directive, or a grammar with a skip parser type is used in `parse` instead of
`phrase_parse`,
* or a non-terminal is used with a skip parser of an incompatible type;
for example, a rule defined with one skip parser type calls a second rule
defined with another, incompatible skip parser type.
[note The same applies to __karma__, replacing 'skip parser' and `lexeme`
by 'delimit generator' and `verbatim`. Similarily, corresponding error
messages in __karma__ reference `boost::function3` and the 3rd
parameter (instead of the 4th).]
[endsect]