Talk:Metasyntax

This  level-5 vital article is rated Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale. It is of interest to the following WikiProjects:

Computing: Software This article is within the scope of WikiProject Computing, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of computers, computing, and information technology on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.ComputingWikipedia:WikiProject ComputingTemplate:WikiProject ComputingComputing ??? This article has not yet received a rating on the project's importance scale. This article is supported by WikiProject Software. Philosophy: Logic Low‑importance This article is within the scope of WikiProject Philosophy, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of content related to philosophy on Wikipedia. If you would like to support the project, please visit the project page, where you can get more details on how you can help, and where you can join the general discussion about philosophy content on Wikipedia.PhilosophyWikipedia:WikiProject PhilosophyTemplate:WikiProject PhilosophyPhilosophy Low This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale. Associated task forces: /  Logic

Should this stub be mergerd into the Metalanguage article, or does this precise topic warrant an article of its own?

Stephan Leeds (talk) 13:13, 26 May 2008 (UTC)Reply

META II and its descendants are different then BNF metalanguages. They are programming languages. What is called non terminals in BNF are rules in these languages. A rule is a boolean function returning success or failure. A syntax rule is a test as are strings and symbols. Tokens, symbols and strings, would be terminals. However in CWIC you have programmed token rules.

syntax = $(rule \ char_class \ token);

id     .. let $(let | dgt | '_');
string .. '"' $(~'"') '"' MAKESTR[];

rule      = id "=" sequence ";" :RULE!2 gen_code[*1];
sequence  = test_seq (("\" backtrack:BCK|"/":ALT alternant)!2|.EMPTY);
backtrack = test_seq ("\" backtrack:BCK!2|.EMPTY);
alternant = test_seq ( "/" alternant:ALT!2|.EMPTY);
test_seq  = "(" sequence ")" | <(test | action) $(test | action)>;
test      = string | rule_call;
rule_call = id:CALL ("[" <arg_list> "]"!2 | !1);
action    = (":" id:NODE | "!" number:TREE | "<" sequence ">":LIST)!1;

A symbol or identifier is defined by a token '..' rule. Even let and dgt in the id token rule are defined by a character class rule. SYNTAX and TOKEN rules are boolean functions returning success or failure. Character class rule define tests that are used in other rules. Generally inline code.

dgt: '0'|'1'|'2'|'3'|'4'|'5'|'6'|'7'|'8'|'9';

These metasyntax metalanguages do not fit the description in artical. Steamerandy (talk) 21:42, 13 December 2014 (UTC)Reply