Works in TP/not WE?

Mike Olds · Post by **Mike Olds** » Mon Oct 12, 2009 1:55 pm

Hello,

Here is a case where I do not seem to be able to get this regex to work in WildEdit while it does work in TextPad Search:

Search for:
\.\.\/\.\.\/dhamma\-vinaya\/bd\/dn\/dn\.([0-9][0-9])\.rhyt\.pts\.htm

Replace with:
\.\.\/\.\.\/dhamma\-vinaya\/pts\/dn\/dn\.\1\.rhyt\.pts\.htm

Example:
../../dhamma-vinaya/bd/dn/dn.02.rhyt.pts.htm

What I get from WildEdit:
../../dhamma-vinaya/pts/dn/dn..rhyt.pts.htm

X regular expression
X replacement format
POSIX

Ready to be shown my stupid oversight.

ben_josephs · Post by **ben_josephs** » Mon Oct 12, 2009 2:29 pm

WildEdit's regex engine is entirely different from TextPad's. TextPad's is old and weak, WildEdit's is modern and powerful. A notational difference is that in a WildEdit replacement expression, to refer to a captured subexpression of the match, you use $n instead of \n.

Also:
You don't need to escape / in a regex.
You don't need to escape - in a regex outside a character class expression.
You don't need to quote any of . / - in a replacement expression (it's not a regex).

Thus, in WildEdit, you can use

Find what: \.\./\.\./dhamma-vinaya/bd/dn/dn\.([0-9][0-9])\.rhyt\.pts\.htm
Replace with: ../../dhamma-vinaya/pts/dn/dn.$1.rhyt.pts.htm

Mike Olds · Post by **Mike Olds** » Mon Oct 12, 2009 2:49 pm

Thanks Ben,

I understand what 'replacement format' means now which was one confusing thing. So what if I want to use a regex for replacement? Seems like the alternative is literal.

I am now using WildEdit as my search tool of choice except where I am working in a workspace where all the files are present where I still find the search tool in TextPad the most convenient.

Thanks also for the tutorial on regular expressions. Learning Regular Expressions may seem like a simple thing, but I think it is as difficult as learning a simple foreign language in one's old age. Unless I actually go through an issue it is the devil to remember all the rules. Without the Clip Library I would be lost, which is why I would urge the inclusion of such in the next version of WE.

ben_josephs · Post by **ben_josephs** » Mon Oct 12, 2009 3:07 pm

I don't understand what you mean by "use a regex for replacement".

What is your requirement?

Mike Olds · Post by **Mike Olds** » Tue Oct 13, 2009 7:40 pm

Hello Ben,

I have no specific problem. I'm guessing this is a terminology issue.

What I am thinking is that 'replacement format' is not a regular expression, what if I wanted to use a regular expression for creating the replacement.

...and you are saying that all the functions of a regular expression are covered by the rules for creating a 'replacement format' replacement?

ben_josephs · Post by **ben_josephs** » Tue Oct 13, 2009 10:00 pm

I'm afraid I still don't understand.

To specify a replacement you need to specify what you want to replace and what you want to replace it with. These two distinct tasks are handled by two distinct items: a regular expression and a replacement expression. The regular expression specifies the character strings you want to replace; the replacement expression specifies what those strings should be replaced by. The replacement can include parts of what it replaces: a $n (\n in TextPad) in the replacement refers to whatever matched the nth parenthesized subexpression of the regular expression.

Please give an example of what you are trying to do.

Mike Olds · Post by **Mike Olds** » Tue Oct 13, 2009 10:33 pm

Hello again Ben,

As I said, I have no problem now that you have pointed me in the right direction.

It's very difficult to come down to the level of the completely ignorant.