1 #############################################################################
2 # Pod/Parser.pm -- package which defines a base class for parsing POD docs.
4 # Copyright (C) 1996-2000 by Bradford Appleton. All rights reserved.
5 # This file is part of "PodParser". PodParser is free software;
6 # you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms
8 #############################################################################
12 use vars qw($VERSION);
13 $VERSION = 1.12; ## Current version of this package
14 require 5.005; ## requires this Perl version or later
16 #############################################################################
20 Pod::Parser - base class for creating POD filters and translators
27 @ISA = qw(Pod::Parser);
30 my ($parser, $command, $paragraph, $line_num) = @_;
31 ## Interpret the command and its text; sample actions might be:
32 if ($command eq 'head1') { ... }
33 elsif ($command eq 'head2') { ... }
34 ## ... other commands and their actions
35 my $out_fh = $parser->output_handle();
36 my $expansion = $parser->interpolate($paragraph, $line_num);
37 print $out_fh $expansion;
41 my ($parser, $paragraph, $line_num) = @_;
42 ## Format verbatim paragraph; sample actions might be:
43 my $out_fh = $parser->output_handle();
44 print $out_fh $paragraph;
48 my ($parser, $paragraph, $line_num) = @_;
49 ## Translate/Format this block of text; sample actions might be:
50 my $out_fh = $parser->output_handle();
51 my $expansion = $parser->interpolate($paragraph, $line_num);
52 print $out_fh $expansion;
55 sub interior_sequence {
56 my ($parser, $seq_command, $seq_argument) = @_;
57 ## Expand an interior sequence; sample actions might be:
58 return "*$seq_argument*" if ($seq_command eq 'B');
59 return "`$seq_argument'" if ($seq_command eq 'C');
60 return "_${seq_argument}_'" if ($seq_command eq 'I');
61 ## ... other sequence commands and their resulting text
66 ## Create a parser object and have it parse file whose name was
67 ## given on the command-line (use STDIN if no files were given).
68 $parser = new MyParser();
69 $parser->parse_from_filehandle(\*STDIN) if (@ARGV == 0);
70 for (@ARGV) { $parser->parse_from_file($_); }
74 perl5.005, Pod::InputObjects, Exporter, Symbol, Carp
82 B<Pod::Parser> is a base class for creating POD filters and translators.
83 It handles most of the effort involved with parsing the POD sections
84 from an input stream, leaving subclasses free to be concerned only with
85 performing the actual translation of text.
87 B<Pod::Parser> parses PODs, and makes method calls to handle the various
88 components of the POD. Subclasses of B<Pod::Parser> override these methods
89 to translate the POD into whatever output format they desire.
93 To create a POD filter for translating POD documentation into some other
94 format, you create a subclass of B<Pod::Parser> which typically overrides
95 just the base class implementation for the following methods:
113 B<interior_sequence()>
117 You may also want to override the B<begin_input()> and B<end_input()>
118 methods for your subclass (to perform any needed per-file and/or
119 per-document initialization or cleanup).
121 If you need to perform any preprocesssing of input before it is parsed
122 you may want to override one or more of B<preprocess_line()> and/or
123 B<preprocess_paragraph()>.
125 Sometimes it may be necessary to make more than one pass over the input
126 files. If this is the case you have several options. You can make the
127 first pass using B<Pod::Parser> and override your methods to store the
128 intermediate results in memory somewhere for the B<end_pod()> method to
129 process. You could use B<Pod::Parser> for several passes with an
130 appropriate state variable to control the operation for each pass. If
131 your input source can't be reset to start at the beginning, you can
132 store it in some other structure as a string or an array and have that
133 structure implement a B<getline()> method (which is all that
134 B<parse_from_filehandle()> uses to read input).
136 Feel free to add any member data fields you need to keep track of things
137 like current font, indentation, horizontal or vertical position, or
138 whatever else you like. Be sure to read L<"PRIVATE METHODS AND DATA">
139 to avoid name collisions.
141 For the most part, the B<Pod::Parser> base class should be able to
142 do most of the input parsing for you and leave you free to worry about
143 how to intepret the commands and translate the result.
145 Note that all we have described here in this quick overview is the
146 simplest most straightforward use of B<Pod::Parser> to do stream-based
147 parsing. It is also possible to use the B<Pod::Parser::parse_text> function
148 to do more sophisticated tree-based parsing. See L<"TREE-BASED PARSING">.
150 =head1 PARSING OPTIONS
152 A I<parse-option> is simply a named option of B<Pod::Parser> with a
153 value that corresponds to a certain specified behavior. These various
154 behaviors of B<Pod::Parser> may be enabled/disabled by setting or
155 or unsetting one or more I<parse-options> using the B<parseopts()> method.
156 The set of currently accepted parse-options is as follows:
160 =item B<-want_nonPODs> (default: unset)
162 Normally (by default) B<Pod::Parser> will only provide access to
163 the POD sections of the input. Input paragraphs that are not part
164 of the POD-format documentation are not made available to the caller
165 (not even using B<preprocess_paragraph()>). Setting this option to a
166 non-empty, non-zero value will allow B<preprocess_paragraph()> to see
167 non-POD sections of the input as well as POD sections. The B<cutting()>
168 method can be used to determine if the corresponding paragraph is a POD
169 paragraph, or some other input paragraph.
171 =item B<-process_cut_cmd> (default: unset)
173 Normally (by default) B<Pod::Parser> handles the C<=cut> POD directive
174 by itself and does not pass it on to the caller for processing. Setting
175 this option to a non-empty, non-zero value will cause B<Pod::Parser> to
176 pass the C<=cut> directive to the caller just like any other POD command
177 (and hence it may be processed by the B<command()> method).
179 B<Pod::Parser> will still interpret the C<=cut> directive to mean that
180 "cutting mode" has been (re)entered, but the caller will get a chance
181 to capture the actual C<=cut> paragraph itself for whatever purpose
184 =item B<-warnings> (default: unset)
186 Normally (by default) B<Pod::Parser> recognizes a bare minimum of
187 pod syntax errors and warnings and issues diagnostic messages
188 for errors, but not for warnings. (Use B<Pod::Checker> to do more
189 thorough checking of POD syntax.) Setting this option to a non-empty,
190 non-zero value will cause B<Pod::Parser> to issue diagnostics for
191 the few warnings it recognizes as well as the errors.
195 Please see L<"parseopts()"> for a complete description of the interface
196 for the setting and unsetting of parse-options.
200 #############################################################################
205 use Pod::InputObjects;
208 require VMS::Filespec if $^O eq 'VMS';
217 ## These "variables" are used as local "glob aliases" for performance
218 use vars qw(%myData %myOpts @input_stack);
220 #############################################################################
222 =head1 RECOMMENDED SUBROUTINE/METHOD OVERRIDES
224 B<Pod::Parser> provides several methods which most subclasses will probably
225 want to override. These methods are as follows:
229 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
233 $parser->command($cmd,$text,$line_num,$pod_para);
235 This method should be overridden by subclasses to take the appropriate
236 action when a POD command paragraph (denoted by a line beginning with
237 "=") is encountered. When such a POD directive is seen in the input,
238 this method is called and is passed:
244 the name of the command for this POD paragraph
248 the paragraph text for the given POD paragraph command.
252 the line-number of the beginning of the paragraph
256 a reference to a C<Pod::Paragraph> object which contains further
257 information about the paragraph command (see L<Pod::InputObjects>
262 B<Note> that this method I<is> called for C<=pod> paragraphs.
264 The base class implementation of this method simply treats the raw POD
265 command as normal block of paragraph text (invoking the B<textblock()>
266 method with the command paragraph).
271 my ($self, $cmd, $text, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
272 ## Just treat this like a textblock
273 $self->textblock($pod_para->raw_text(), $line_num, $pod_para);
276 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
280 $parser->verbatim($text,$line_num,$pod_para);
282 This method may be overridden by subclasses to take the appropriate
283 action when a block of verbatim text is encountered. It is passed the
284 following parameters:
290 the block of text for the verbatim paragraph
294 the line-number of the beginning of the paragraph
298 a reference to a C<Pod::Paragraph> object which contains further
299 information about the paragraph (see L<Pod::InputObjects>
304 The base class implementation of this method simply prints the textblock
305 (unmodified) to the output filehandle.
310 my ($self, $text, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
311 my $out_fh = $self->{_OUTPUT};
315 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
317 =head1 B<textblock()>
319 $parser->textblock($text,$line_num,$pod_para);
321 This method may be overridden by subclasses to take the appropriate
322 action when a normal block of POD text is encountered (although the base
323 class method will usually do what you want). It is passed the following
330 the block of text for the a POD paragraph
334 the line-number of the beginning of the paragraph
338 a reference to a C<Pod::Paragraph> object which contains further
339 information about the paragraph (see L<Pod::InputObjects>
344 In order to process interior sequences, subclasses implementations of
345 this method will probably want to invoke either B<interpolate()> or
346 B<parse_text()>, passing it the text block C<$text>, and the corresponding
347 line number in C<$line_num>, and then perform any desired processing upon
350 The base class implementation of this method simply prints the text block
351 as it occurred in the input stream).
356 my ($self, $text, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
357 my $out_fh = $self->{_OUTPUT};
358 print $out_fh $self->interpolate($text, $line_num);
361 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
363 =head1 B<interior_sequence()>
365 $parser->interior_sequence($seq_cmd,$seq_arg,$pod_seq);
367 This method should be overridden by subclasses to take the appropriate
368 action when an interior sequence is encountered. An interior sequence is
369 an embedded command within a block of text which appears as a command
370 name (usually a single uppercase character) followed immediately by a
371 string of text which is enclosed in angle brackets. This method is
372 passed the sequence command C<$seq_cmd> and the corresponding text
373 C<$seq_arg>. It is invoked by the B<interpolate()> method for each interior
374 sequence that occurs in the string that it is passed. It should return
375 the desired text string to be used in place of the interior sequence.
376 The C<$pod_seq> argument is a reference to a C<Pod::InteriorSequence>
377 object which contains further information about the interior sequence.
378 Please see L<Pod::InputObjects> for details if you need to access this
379 additional information.
381 Subclass implementations of this method may wish to invoke the
382 B<nested()> method of C<$pod_seq> to see if it is nested inside
383 some other interior-sequence (and if so, which kind).
385 The base class implementation of the B<interior_sequence()> method
386 simply returns the raw text of the interior sequence (as it occurred
387 in the input) to the caller.
391 sub interior_sequence {
392 my ($self, $seq_cmd, $seq_arg, $pod_seq) = @_;
393 ## Just return the raw text of the interior sequence
394 return $pod_seq->raw_text();
397 #############################################################################
399 =head1 OPTIONAL SUBROUTINE/METHOD OVERRIDES
401 B<Pod::Parser> provides several methods which subclasses may want to override
402 to perform any special pre/post-processing. These methods do I<not> have to
403 be overridden, but it may be useful for subclasses to take advantage of them.
407 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
411 my $parser = Pod::Parser->new();
413 This is the constructor for B<Pod::Parser> and its subclasses. You
414 I<do not> need to override this method! It is capable of constructing
415 subclass objects as well as base class objects, provided you use
416 any of the following constructor invocation styles:
418 my $parser1 = MyParser->new();
419 my $parser2 = new MyParser();
420 my $parser3 = $parser2->new();
422 where C<MyParser> is some subclass of B<Pod::Parser>.
424 Using the syntax C<MyParser::new()> to invoke the constructor is I<not>
425 recommended, but if you insist on being able to do this, then the
426 subclass I<will> need to override the B<new()> constructor method. If
427 you do override the constructor, you I<must> be sure to invoke the
428 B<initialize()> method of the newly blessed object.
430 Using any of the above invocations, the first argument to the
431 constructor is always the corresponding package name (or object
432 reference). No other arguments are required, but if desired, an
433 associative array (or hash-table) my be passed to the B<new()>
436 my $parser1 = MyParser->new( MYDATA => $value1, MOREDATA => $value2 );
437 my $parser2 = new MyParser( -myflag => 1 );
439 All arguments passed to the B<new()> constructor will be treated as
440 key/value pairs in a hash-table. The newly constructed object will be
441 initialized by copying the contents of the given hash-table (which may
442 have been empty). The B<new()> constructor for this class and all of its
443 subclasses returns a blessed reference to the initialized object (hash-table).
448 ## Determine if we were called via an object-ref or a classname
450 my $class = ref($this) || $this;
451 ## Any remaining arguments are treated as initial values for the
452 ## hash that is used to represent this object.
454 my $self = { %params };
455 ## Bless ourselves into the desired class and perform any initialization
461 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
463 =head1 B<initialize()>
465 $parser->initialize();
467 This method performs any necessary object initialization. It takes no
468 arguments (other than the object instance of course, which is typically
469 copied to a local variable named C<$self>). If subclasses override this
470 method then they I<must> be sure to invoke C<$self-E<gt>SUPER::initialize()>.
479 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
481 =head1 B<begin_pod()>
483 $parser->begin_pod();
485 This method is invoked at the beginning of processing for each POD
486 document that is encountered in the input. Subclasses should override
487 this method to perform any per-document initialization.
496 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
498 =head1 B<begin_input()>
500 $parser->begin_input();
502 This method is invoked by B<parse_from_filehandle()> immediately I<before>
503 processing input from a filehandle. The base class implementation does
504 nothing, however, subclasses may override it to perform any per-file
507 Note that if multiple files are parsed for a single POD document
508 (perhaps the result of some future C<=include> directive) this method
509 is invoked for every file that is parsed. If you wish to perform certain
510 initializations once per document, then you should use B<begin_pod()>.
519 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
521 =head1 B<end_input()>
523 $parser->end_input();
525 This method is invoked by B<parse_from_filehandle()> immediately I<after>
526 processing input from a filehandle. The base class implementation does
527 nothing, however, subclasses may override it to perform any per-file
530 Please note that if multiple files are parsed for a single POD document
531 (perhaps the result of some kind of C<=include> directive) this method
532 is invoked for every file that is parsed. If you wish to perform certain
533 cleanup actions once per document, then you should use B<end_pod()>.
542 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
548 This method is invoked at the end of processing for each POD document
549 that is encountered in the input. Subclasses should override this method
550 to perform any per-document finalization.
559 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
561 =head1 B<preprocess_line()>
563 $textline = $parser->preprocess_line($text, $line_num);
565 This method should be overridden by subclasses that wish to perform
566 any kind of preprocessing for each I<line> of input (I<before> it has
567 been determined whether or not it is part of a POD paragraph). The
568 parameter C<$text> is the input line; and the parameter C<$line_num> is
569 the line number of the corresponding text line.
571 The value returned should correspond to the new text to use in its
572 place. If the empty string or an undefined value is returned then no
573 further processing will be performed for this line.
575 Please note that the B<preprocess_line()> method is invoked I<before>
576 the B<preprocess_paragraph()> method. After all (possibly preprocessed)
577 lines in a paragraph have been assembled together and it has been
578 determined that the paragraph is part of the POD documentation from one
579 of the selected sections, then B<preprocess_paragraph()> is invoked.
581 The base class implementation of this method returns the given text.
585 sub preprocess_line {
586 my ($self, $text, $line_num) = @_;
590 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
592 =head1 B<preprocess_paragraph()>
594 $textblock = $parser->preprocess_paragraph($text, $line_num);
596 This method should be overridden by subclasses that wish to perform any
597 kind of preprocessing for each block (paragraph) of POD documentation
598 that appears in the input stream. The parameter C<$text> is the POD
599 paragraph from the input file; and the parameter C<$line_num> is the
600 line number for the beginning of the corresponding paragraph.
602 The value returned should correspond to the new text to use in its
603 place If the empty string is returned or an undefined value is
604 returned, then the given C<$text> is ignored (not processed).
606 This method is invoked after gathering up all the lines in a paragraph
607 and after determining the cutting state of the paragraph,
608 but before trying to further parse or interpret them. After
609 B<preprocess_paragraph()> returns, the current cutting state (which
610 is returned by C<$self-E<gt>cutting()>) is examined. If it evaluates
611 to true then input text (including the given C<$text>) is cut (not
612 processed) until the next POD directive is encountered.
614 Please note that the B<preprocess_line()> method is invoked I<before>
615 the B<preprocess_paragraph()> method. After all (possibly preprocessed)
616 lines in a paragraph have been assembled together and either it has been
617 determined that the paragraph is part of the POD documentation from one
618 of the selected sections or the C<-want_nonPODs> option is true,
619 then B<preprocess_paragraph()> is invoked.
621 The base class implementation of this method returns the given text.
625 sub preprocess_paragraph {
626 my ($self, $text, $line_num) = @_;
630 #############################################################################
632 =head1 METHODS FOR PARSING AND PROCESSING
634 B<Pod::Parser> provides several methods to process input text. These
635 methods typically won't need to be overridden (and in some cases they
636 can't be overridden), but subclasses may want to invoke them to exploit
641 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
643 =head1 B<parse_text()>
645 $ptree1 = $parser->parse_text($text, $line_num);
646 $ptree2 = $parser->parse_text({%opts}, $text, $line_num);
647 $ptree3 = $parser->parse_text(\%opts, $text, $line_num);
649 This method is useful if you need to perform your own interpolation
650 of interior sequences and can't rely upon B<interpolate> to expand
651 them in simple bottom-up order order.
653 The parameter C<$text> is a string or block of text to be parsed
654 for interior sequences; and the parameter C<$line_num> is the
655 line number curresponding to the beginning of C<$text>.
657 B<parse_text()> will parse the given text into a parse-tree of "nodes."
658 and interior-sequences. Each "node" in the parse tree is either a
659 text-string, or a B<Pod::InteriorSequence>. The result returned is a
660 parse-tree of type B<Pod::ParseTree>. Please see L<Pod::InputObjects>
661 for more information about B<Pod::InteriorSequence> and B<Pod::ParseTree>.
663 If desired, an optional hash-ref may be specified as the first argument
664 to customize certain aspects of the parse-tree that is created and
665 returned. The set of recognized option keywords are:
669 =item B<-expand_seq> =E<gt> I<code-ref>|I<method-name>
671 Normally, the parse-tree returned by B<parse_text()> will contain an
672 unexpanded C<Pod::InteriorSequence> object for each interior-sequence
673 encountered. Specifying B<-expand_seq> tells B<parse_text()> to "expand"
674 every interior-sequence it sees by invoking the referenced function
675 (or named method of the parser object) and using the return value as the
678 If a subroutine reference was given, it is invoked as:
680 &$code_ref( $parser, $sequence )
682 and if a method-name was given, it is invoked as:
684 $parser->method_name( $sequence )
686 where C<$parser> is a reference to the parser object, and C<$sequence>
687 is a reference to the interior-sequence object.
688 [I<NOTE>: If the B<interior_sequence()> method is specified, then it is
689 invoked according to the interface specified in L<"interior_sequence()">].
691 =item B<-expand_text> =E<gt> I<code-ref>|I<method-name>
693 Normally, the parse-tree returned by B<parse_text()> will contain a
694 text-string for each contiguous sequence of characters outside of an
695 interior-sequence. Specifying B<-expand_text> tells B<parse_text()> to
696 "preprocess" every such text-string it sees by invoking the referenced
697 function (or named method of the parser object) and using the return value
698 as the preprocessed (or "expanded") result. [Note that if the result is
699 an interior-sequence, then it will I<not> be expanded as specified by the
700 B<-expand_seq> option; Any such recursive expansion needs to be handled by
701 the specified callback routine.]
703 If a subroutine reference was given, it is invoked as:
705 &$code_ref( $parser, $text, $ptree_node )
707 and if a method-name was given, it is invoked as:
709 $parser->method_name( $text, $ptree_node )
711 where C<$parser> is a reference to the parser object, C<$text> is the
712 text-string encountered, and C<$ptree_node> is a reference to the current
713 node in the parse-tree (usually an interior-sequence object or else the
714 top-level node of the parse-tree).
716 =item B<-expand_ptree> =E<gt> I<code-ref>|I<method-name>
718 Rather than returning a C<Pod::ParseTree>, pass the parse-tree as an
719 argument to the referenced subroutine (or named method of the parser
720 object) and return the result instead of the parse-tree object.
722 If a subroutine reference was given, it is invoked as:
724 &$code_ref( $parser, $ptree )
726 and if a method-name was given, it is invoked as:
728 $parser->method_name( $ptree )
730 where C<$parser> is a reference to the parser object, and C<$ptree>
731 is a reference to the parse-tree object.
741 ## Get options and set any defaults
742 my %opts = (ref $_[0]) ? %{ shift() } : ();
743 my $expand_seq = $opts{'-expand_seq'} || undef;
744 my $expand_text = $opts{'-expand_text'} || undef;
745 my $expand_ptree = $opts{'-expand_ptree'} || undef;
749 my $file = $self->input_file();
752 ## Convert method calls into closures, for our convenience
753 my $xseq_sub = $expand_seq;
754 my $xtext_sub = $expand_text;
755 my $xptree_sub = $expand_ptree;
756 if (defined $expand_seq and $expand_seq eq 'interior_sequence') {
757 ## If 'interior_sequence' is the method to use, we have to pass
758 ## more than just the sequence object, we also need to pass the
759 ## sequence name and text.
761 my ($self, $iseq) = @_;
762 my $args = join("", $iseq->parse_tree->children);
763 return $self->interior_sequence($iseq->name, $args, $iseq);
766 ref $xseq_sub or $xseq_sub = sub { shift()->$expand_seq(@_) };
767 ref $xtext_sub or $xtext_sub = sub { shift()->$expand_text(@_) };
768 ref $xptree_sub or $xptree_sub = sub { shift()->$expand_ptree(@_) };
770 ## Keep track of the "current" interior sequence, and maintain a stack
771 ## of "in progress" sequences.
773 ## NOTE that we push our own "accumulator" at the very beginning of the
774 ## stack. It's really a parse-tree, not a sequence; but it implements
775 ## the methods we need so we can use it to gather-up all the sequences
776 ## and strings we parse. Thus, by the end of our parsing, it should be
777 ## the only thing left on our stack and all we have to do is return it!
779 my $seq = Pod::ParseTree->new();
780 my @seq_stack = ($seq);
781 my ($ldelim, $rdelim) = ('', '');
783 ## Iterate over all sequence starts text (NOTE: split with
784 ## capturing parens keeps the delimiters)
786 my @tokens = split /([A-Z]<(?:<+\s+)?)/;
789 ## Look for the beginning of a sequence
790 if ( /^([A-Z])(<(?:<+\s+)?)$/ ) {
791 ## Push a new sequence onto the stack of those "in-progress"
792 ($cmd, $ldelim) = ($1, $2);
793 $seq = Pod::InteriorSequence->new(
795 -ldelim => $ldelim, -rdelim => '',
796 -file => $file, -line => $line
798 $ldelim =~ s/\s+$//, ($rdelim = $ldelim) =~ tr/</>/;
799 (@seq_stack > 1) and $seq->nested($seq_stack[-1]);
800 push @seq_stack, $seq;
802 ## Look for sequence ending
803 elsif ( @seq_stack > 1 ) {
804 ## Make sure we match the right kind of closing delimiter
805 my ($seq_end, $post_seq) = ("", "");
806 if ( ($ldelim eq '<' and /\A(.*?)(>)/s)
807 or /\A(.*?)(\s+$rdelim)/s )
809 ## Found end-of-sequence, capture the interior and the
810 ## closing the delimiter, and put the rest back on the
812 $post_seq = substr($_, length($1) + length($2));
813 ($_, $seq_end) = ($1, $2);
814 (length $post_seq) and unshift @tokens, $post_seq;
817 ## In the middle of a sequence, append this text to it, and
818 ## dont forget to "expand" it if that's what the caller wanted
819 $seq->append($expand_text ? &$xtext_sub($self,$_,$seq) : $_);
822 if (length $seq_end) {
823 ## End of current sequence, record terminating delimiter
824 $seq->rdelim($seq_end);
825 ## Pop it off the stack of "in progress" sequences
827 ## Append result to its parent in current parse tree
828 $seq_stack[-1]->append($expand_seq ? &$xseq_sub($self,$seq)
830 ## Remember the current cmd-name and left-delimiter
831 $cmd = (@seq_stack > 1) ? $seq_stack[-1]->name : '';
832 $ldelim = (@seq_stack > 1) ? $seq_stack[-1]->ldelim : '';
833 $ldelim =~ s/\s+$//, ($rdelim = $ldelim) =~ tr/</>/;
837 ## In the middle of a sequence, append this text to it, and
838 ## dont forget to "expand" it if that's what the caller wanted
839 $seq->append($expand_text ? &$xtext_sub($self,$_,$seq) : $_);
841 ## Keep track of line count
843 ## Remember the "current" sequence
844 $seq = $seq_stack[-1];
847 ## Handle unterminated sequences
848 my $errorsub = (@seq_stack > 1) ? $self->errorsub() : undef;
849 while (@seq_stack > 1) {
850 ($cmd, $file, $line) = ($seq->name, $seq->file_line);
851 $file = VMS::Filespec::unixify($file) if $^O eq 'VMS';
852 $ldelim = $seq->ldelim;
853 ($rdelim = $ldelim) =~ tr/</>/;
854 $rdelim =~ s/^(\S+)(\s*)$/$2$1/;
856 my $errmsg = "*** ERROR: unterminated ${cmd}${ldelim}...${rdelim}".
857 " at line $line in file $file\n";
858 (ref $errorsub) and &{$errorsub}($errmsg)
859 or (defined $errorsub) and $self->$errorsub($errmsg)
861 $seq_stack[-1]->append($expand_seq ? &$xseq_sub($self,$seq) : $seq);
862 $seq = $seq_stack[-1];
865 ## Return the resulting parse-tree
866 my $ptree = (pop @seq_stack)->parse_tree;
867 return $expand_ptree ? &$xptree_sub($self, $ptree) : $ptree;
870 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
872 =head1 B<interpolate()>
874 $textblock = $parser->interpolate($text, $line_num);
876 This method translates all text (including any embedded interior sequences)
877 in the given text string C<$text> and returns the interpolated result. The
878 parameter C<$line_num> is the line number corresponding to the beginning
881 B<interpolate()> merely invokes a private method to recursively expand
882 nested interior sequences in bottom-up order (innermost sequences are
883 expanded first). If there is a need to expand nested sequences in
884 some alternate order, use B<parse_text> instead.
889 my($self, $text, $line_num) = @_;
890 my %parse_opts = ( -expand_seq => 'interior_sequence' );
891 my $ptree = $self->parse_text( \%parse_opts, $text, $line_num );
892 return join "", $ptree->children();
895 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
899 =head1 B<parse_paragraph()>
901 $parser->parse_paragraph($text, $line_num);
903 This method takes the text of a POD paragraph to be processed, along
904 with its corresponding line number, and invokes the appropriate method
905 (one of B<command()>, B<verbatim()>, or B<textblock()>).
907 For performance reasons, this method is invoked directly without any
908 dynamic lookup; Hence subclasses may I<not> override it!
914 sub parse_paragraph {
915 my ($self, $text, $line_num) = @_;
916 local *myData = $self; ## alias to avoid deref-ing overhead
917 local *myOpts = ($myData{_PARSEOPTS} ||= {}); ## get parse-options
920 ## See if we want to preprocess nonPOD paragraphs as well as POD ones.
921 my $wantNonPods = $myOpts{'-want_nonPODs'};
923 ## Update cutting status
924 $myData{_CUTTING} = 0 if $text =~ /^={1,2}\S/;
926 ## Perform any desired preprocessing if we wanted it this early
927 $wantNonPods and $text = $self->preprocess_paragraph($text, $line_num);
929 ## Ignore up until next POD directive if we are cutting
930 return if $myData{_CUTTING};
932 ## Now we know this is block of text in a POD section!
934 ##-----------------------------------------------------------------
935 ## This is a hook (hack ;-) for Pod::Select to do its thing without
936 ## having to override methods, but also without Pod::Parser assuming
937 ## $self is an instance of Pod::Select (if the _SELECTED_SECTIONS
938 ## field exists then we assume there is an is_selected() method for
939 ## us to invoke (calling $self->can('is_selected') could verify this
940 ## but that is more overhead than I want to incur)
941 ##-----------------------------------------------------------------
943 ## Ignore this block if it isnt in one of the selected sections
944 if (exists $myData{_SELECTED_SECTIONS}) {
945 $self->is_selected($text) or return ($myData{_CUTTING} = 1);
948 ## If we havent already, perform any desired preprocessing and
949 ## then re-check the "cutting" state
950 unless ($wantNonPods) {
951 $text = $self->preprocess_paragraph($text, $line_num);
952 return 1 unless ((defined $text) and (length $text));
953 return 1 if ($myData{_CUTTING});
956 ## Look for one of the three types of paragraphs
957 my ($pfx, $cmd, $arg, $sep) = ('', '', '', '');
958 my $pod_para = undef;
959 if ($text =~ /^(={1,2})(?=\S)/) {
960 ## Looks like a command paragraph. Capture the command prefix used
961 ## ("=" or "=="), as well as the command-name, its paragraph text,
962 ## and whatever sequence of characters was used to separate them
964 $_ = substr($text, length $pfx);
965 ($cmd, $sep, $text) = split /(\s+)/, $_, 2;
966 ## If this is a "cut" directive then we dont need to do anything
967 ## except return to "cutting" mode.
969 $myData{_CUTTING} = 1;
970 return unless $myOpts{'-process_cut_cmd'};
973 ## Save the attributes indicating how the command was specified.
974 $pod_para = new Pod::Paragraph(
979 -file => $myData{_INFILE},
982 # ## Invoke appropriate callbacks
983 # if (exists $myData{_CALLBACKS}) {
984 # ## Look through the callback list, invoke callbacks,
985 # ## then see if we need to do the default actions
986 # ## (invoke_callbacks will return true if we do).
987 # return 1 unless $self->invoke_callbacks($cmd, $text, $line_num, $pod_para);
990 ## A command paragraph
991 $self->command($cmd, $text, $line_num, $pod_para);
993 elsif ($text =~ /^\s+/) {
994 ## Indented text - must be a verbatim paragraph
995 $self->verbatim($text, $line_num, $pod_para);
998 ## Looks like an ordinary block of text
999 $self->textblock($text, $line_num, $pod_para);
1004 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1006 =head1 B<parse_from_filehandle()>
1008 $parser->parse_from_filehandle($in_fh,$out_fh);
1010 This method takes an input filehandle (which is assumed to already be
1011 opened for reading) and reads the entire input stream looking for blocks
1012 (paragraphs) of POD documentation to be processed. If no first argument
1013 is given the default input filehandle C<STDIN> is used.
1015 The C<$in_fh> parameter may be any object that provides a B<getline()>
1016 method to retrieve a single line of input text (hence, an appropriate
1017 wrapper object could be used to parse PODs from a single string or an
1020 Using C<$in_fh-E<gt>getline()>, input is read line-by-line and assembled
1021 into paragraphs or "blocks" (which are separated by lines containing
1022 nothing but whitespace). For each block of POD documentation
1023 encountered it will invoke a method to parse the given paragraph.
1025 If a second argument is given then it should correspond to a filehandle where
1026 output should be sent (otherwise the default output filehandle is
1027 C<STDOUT> if no output filehandle is currently in use).
1029 B<NOTE:> For performance reasons, this method caches the input stream at
1030 the top of the stack in a local variable. Any attempts by clients to
1031 change the stack contents during processing when in the midst executing
1032 of this method I<will not affect> the input stream used by the current
1033 invocation of this method.
1035 This method does I<not> usually need to be overridden by subclasses.
1039 sub parse_from_filehandle {
1041 my %opts = (ref $_[0] eq 'HASH') ? %{ shift() } : ();
1042 my ($in_fh, $out_fh) = @_;
1043 $in_fh = \*STDIN unless ($in_fh);
1044 local *myData = $self; ## alias to avoid deref-ing overhead
1045 local *myOpts = ($myData{_PARSEOPTS} ||= {}); ## get parse-options
1048 ## Put this stream at the top of the stack and do beginning-of-input
1049 ## processing. NOTE that $in_fh might be reset during this process.
1050 my $topstream = $self->_push_input_stream($in_fh, $out_fh);
1051 (exists $opts{-cutting}) and $self->cutting( $opts{-cutting} );
1053 ## Initialize line/paragraph
1054 my ($textline, $paragraph) = ('', '');
1055 my ($nlines, $plines) = (0, 0);
1057 ## Use <$fh> instead of $fh->getline where possible (for speed)
1059 my $tied_fh = (/^(?:GLOB|FileHandle|IO::\w+)$/ or tied $in_fh);
1061 ## Read paragraphs line-by-line
1062 while (defined ($textline = $tied_fh ? <$in_fh> : $in_fh->getline)) {
1063 $textline = $self->preprocess_line($textline, ++$nlines);
1064 next unless ((defined $textline) && (length $textline));
1065 $_ = $paragraph; ## save previous contents
1067 if ((! length $paragraph) && ($textline =~ /^==/)) {
1068 ## '==' denotes a one-line command paragraph
1069 $paragraph = $textline;
1073 ## Append this line to the current paragraph
1074 $paragraph .= $textline;
1078 ## See if this line is blank and ends the current paragraph.
1079 ## If it isnt, then keep iterating until it is.
1080 next unless (($textline =~ /^([^\S\r\n]*)[\r\n]*$/)
1081 && (length $paragraph));
1083 ## Issue a warning about any non-empty blank lines
1084 if (length($1) > 1 and $myOpts{'-warnings'} and ! $myData{_CUTTING}) {
1085 my $errorsub = $self->errorsub();
1086 my $file = $self->input_file();
1087 $file = VMS::Filespec::unixify($file) if $^O eq 'VMS';
1088 my $errmsg = "*** WARNING: line containing nothing but whitespace".
1089 " in paragraph at line $nlines in file $file\n";
1090 (ref $errorsub) and &{$errorsub}($errmsg)
1091 or (defined $errorsub) and $self->$errorsub($errmsg)
1095 ## Now process the paragraph
1096 parse_paragraph($self, $paragraph, ($nlines - $plines) + 1);
1100 ## Dont forget about the last paragraph in the file
1101 if (length $paragraph) {
1102 parse_paragraph($self, $paragraph, ($nlines - $plines) + 1)
1105 ## Now pop the input stream off the top of the input stack.
1106 $self->_pop_input_stream();
1109 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1111 =head1 B<parse_from_file()>
1113 $parser->parse_from_file($filename,$outfile);
1115 This method takes a filename and does the following:
1121 opens the input and output files for reading
1122 (creating the appropriate filehandles)
1126 invokes the B<parse_from_filehandle()> method passing it the
1127 corresponding input and output filehandles.
1131 closes the input and output files.
1135 If the special input filename "-" or "<&STDIN" is given then the STDIN
1136 filehandle is used for input (and no open or close is performed). If no
1137 input filename is specified then "-" is implied.
1139 If a second argument is given then it should be the name of the desired
1140 output file. If the special output filename "-" or ">&STDOUT" is given
1141 then the STDOUT filehandle is used for output (and no open or close is
1142 performed). If the special output filename ">&STDERR" is given then the
1143 STDERR filehandle is used for output (and no open or close is
1144 performed). If no output filehandle is currently in use and no output
1145 filename is specified, then "-" is implied.
1147 This method does I<not> usually need to be overridden by subclasses.
1151 sub parse_from_file {
1153 my %opts = (ref $_[0] eq 'HASH') ? %{ shift() } : ();
1154 my ($infile, $outfile) = @_;
1155 my ($in_fh, $out_fh) = (gensym, gensym) if ($] < 5.6);
1156 my ($close_input, $close_output) = (0, 0);
1157 local *myData = $self;
1160 ## Is $infile a filename or a (possibly implied) filehandle
1161 $infile = '-' unless ((defined $infile) && (length $infile));
1162 if (($infile eq '-') || ($infile =~ /^<&(STDIN|0)$/i)) {
1163 ## Not a filename, just a string implying STDIN
1164 $myData{_INFILE} = "<standard input>";
1167 elsif (ref $infile) {
1168 ## Must be a filehandle-ref (or else assume its a ref to an object
1169 ## that supports the common IO read operations).
1170 $myData{_INFILE} = ${$infile};
1174 ## We have a filename, open it for reading
1175 $myData{_INFILE} = $infile;
1176 open($in_fh, "< $infile") or
1177 croak "Can't open $infile for reading: $!\n";
1181 ## NOTE: we need to be *very* careful when "defaulting" the output
1182 ## file. We only want to use a default if this is the beginning of
1183 ## the entire document (but *not* if this is an included file). We
1184 ## determine this by seeing if the input stream stack has been set-up
1187 unless ((defined $outfile) && (length $outfile)) {
1188 (defined $myData{_TOP_STREAM}) && ($out_fh = $myData{_OUTPUT})
1189 || ($outfile = '-');
1191 ## Is $outfile a filename or a (possibly implied) filehandle
1192 if ((defined $outfile) && (length $outfile)) {
1193 if (($outfile eq '-') || ($outfile =~ /^>&?(?:STDOUT|1)$/i)) {
1194 ## Not a filename, just a string implying STDOUT
1195 $myData{_OUTFILE} = "<standard output>";
1198 elsif ($outfile =~ /^>&(STDERR|2)$/i) {
1199 ## Not a filename, just a string implying STDERR
1200 $myData{_OUTFILE} = "<standard error>";
1203 elsif (ref $outfile) {
1204 ## Must be a filehandle-ref (or else assume its a ref to an
1205 ## object that supports the common IO write operations).
1206 $myData{_OUTFILE} = ${$outfile};
1210 ## We have a filename, open it for writing
1211 $myData{_OUTFILE} = $outfile;
1212 (-d $outfile) and croak "$outfile is a directory, not POD input!\n";
1213 open($out_fh, "> $outfile") or
1214 croak "Can't open $outfile for writing: $!\n";
1219 ## Whew! That was a lot of work to set up reasonably/robust behavior
1220 ## in the case of a non-filename for reading and writing. Now we just
1221 ## have to parse the input and close the handles when we're finished.
1222 $self->parse_from_filehandle(\%opts, $in_fh, $out_fh);
1225 close($in_fh) || croak "Can't close $infile after reading: $!\n";
1227 close($out_fh) || croak "Can't close $outfile after writing: $!\n";
1230 #############################################################################
1232 =head1 ACCESSOR METHODS
1234 Clients of B<Pod::Parser> should use the following methods to access
1235 instance data fields:
1239 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1241 =head1 B<errorsub()>
1243 $parser->errorsub("method_name");
1244 $parser->errorsub(\&warn_user);
1245 $parser->errorsub(sub { print STDERR, @_ });
1247 Specifies the method or subroutine to use when printing error messages
1248 about POD syntax. The supplied method/subroutine I<must> return TRUE upon
1249 successful printing of the message. If C<undef> is given, then the B<warn>
1250 builtin is used to issue error messages (this is the default behavior).
1252 my $errorsub = $parser->errorsub()
1253 my $errmsg = "This is an error message!\n"
1254 (ref $errorsub) and &{$errorsub}($errmsg)
1255 or (defined $errorsub) and $parser->$errorsub($errmsg)
1258 Returns a method name, or else a reference to the user-supplied subroutine
1259 used to print error messages. Returns C<undef> if the B<warn> builtin
1260 is used to issue error messages (this is the default behavior).
1265 return (@_ > 1) ? ($_[0]->{_ERRORSUB} = $_[1]) : $_[0]->{_ERRORSUB};
1268 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1272 $boolean = $parser->cutting();
1274 Returns the current C<cutting> state: a boolean-valued scalar which
1275 evaluates to true if text from the input file is currently being "cut"
1276 (meaning it is I<not> considered part of the POD document).
1278 $parser->cutting($boolean);
1280 Sets the current C<cutting> state to the given value and returns the
1286 return (@_ > 1) ? ($_[0]->{_CUTTING} = $_[1]) : $_[0]->{_CUTTING};
1289 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1291 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1293 =head1 B<parseopts()>
1295 When invoked with no additional arguments, B<parseopts> returns a hashtable
1296 of all the current parsing options.
1298 ## See if we are parsing non-POD sections as well as POD ones
1299 my %opts = $parser->parseopts();
1300 $opts{'-want_nonPODs}' and print "-want_nonPODs\n";
1302 When invoked using a single string, B<parseopts> treats the string as the
1303 name of a parse-option and returns its corresponding value if it exists
1304 (returns C<undef> if it doesn't).
1306 ## Did we ask to see '=cut' paragraphs?
1307 my $want_cut = $parser->parseopts('-process_cut_cmd');
1308 $want_cut and print "-process_cut_cmd\n";
1310 When invoked with multiple arguments, B<parseopts> treats them as
1311 key/value pairs and the specified parse-option names are set to the
1312 given values. Any unspecified parse-options are unaffected.
1314 ## Set them back to the default
1315 $parser->parseopts(-warnings => 0);
1317 When passed a single hash-ref, B<parseopts> uses that hash to completely
1318 reset the existing parse-options, all previous parse-option values
1321 ## Reset all options to default
1322 $parser->parseopts( { } );
1324 See L<"PARSING OPTIONS"> for more information on the name and meaning of each
1325 parse-option currently recognized.
1330 local *myData = shift;
1331 local *myOpts = ($myData{_PARSEOPTS} ||= {});
1332 return %myOpts if (@_ == 0);
1335 return ref($_) ? $myData{_PARSEOPTS} = $_ : $myOpts{$_};
1337 my @newOpts = (%myOpts, @_);
1338 $myData{_PARSEOPTS} = { @newOpts };
1341 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1343 =head1 B<output_file()>
1345 $fname = $parser->output_file();
1347 Returns the name of the output file being written.
1352 return $_[0]->{_OUTFILE};
1355 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1357 =head1 B<output_handle()>
1359 $fhandle = $parser->output_handle();
1361 Returns the output filehandle object.
1366 return $_[0]->{_OUTPUT};
1369 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1371 =head1 B<input_file()>
1373 $fname = $parser->input_file();
1375 Returns the name of the input file being read.
1380 return $_[0]->{_INFILE};
1383 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1385 =head1 B<input_handle()>
1387 $fhandle = $parser->input_handle();
1389 Returns the current input filehandle object.
1394 return $_[0]->{_INPUT};
1397 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1401 =head1 B<input_streams()>
1403 $listref = $parser->input_streams();
1405 Returns a reference to an array which corresponds to the stack of all
1406 the input streams that are currently in the middle of being parsed.
1408 While parsing an input stream, it is possible to invoke
1409 B<parse_from_file()> or B<parse_from_filehandle()> to parse a new input
1410 stream and then return to parsing the previous input stream. Each input
1411 stream to be parsed is pushed onto the end of this input stack
1412 before any of its input is read. The input stream that is currently
1413 being parsed is always at the end (or top) of the input stack. When an
1414 input stream has been exhausted, it is popped off the end of the
1417 Each element on this input stack is a reference to C<Pod::InputSource>
1418 object. Please see L<Pod::InputObjects> for more details.
1420 This method might be invoked when printing diagnostic messages, for example,
1421 to obtain the name and line number of the all input files that are currently
1429 return $_[0]->{_INPUT_STREAMS};
1432 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1436 =head1 B<top_stream()>
1438 $hashref = $parser->top_stream();
1440 Returns a reference to the hash-table that represents the element
1441 that is currently at the top (end) of the input stream stack
1442 (see L<"input_streams()">). The return value will be the C<undef>
1443 if the input stack is empty.
1445 This method might be used when printing diagnostic messages, for example,
1446 to obtain the name and line number of the current input file.
1453 return $_[0]->{_TOP_STREAM} || undef;
1456 #############################################################################
1458 =head1 PRIVATE METHODS AND DATA
1460 B<Pod::Parser> makes use of several internal methods and data fields
1461 which clients should not need to see or use. For the sake of avoiding
1462 name collisions for client data and methods, these methods and fields
1463 are briefly discussed here. Determined hackers may obtain further
1464 information about them by reading the B<Pod::Parser> source code.
1466 Private data fields are stored in the hash-object whose reference is
1467 returned by the B<new()> constructor for this class. The names of all
1468 private methods and data-fields used by B<Pod::Parser> begin with a
1469 prefix of "_" and match the regular expression C</^_\w+$/>.
1473 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1477 =head1 B<_push_input_stream()>
1479 $hashref = $parser->_push_input_stream($in_fh,$out_fh);
1481 This method will push the given input stream on the input stack and
1482 perform any necessary beginning-of-document or beginning-of-file
1483 processing. The argument C<$in_fh> is the input stream filehandle to
1484 push, and C<$out_fh> is the corresponding output filehandle to use (if
1485 it is not given or is undefined, then the current output stream is used,
1486 which defaults to standard output if it doesnt exist yet).
1488 The value returned will be reference to the hash-table that represents
1489 the new top of the input stream stack. I<Please Note> that it is
1490 possible for this method to use default values for the input and output
1491 file handles. If this happens, you will need to look at the C<INPUT>
1492 and C<OUTPUT> instance data members to determine their new values.
1498 sub _push_input_stream {
1499 my ($self, $in_fh, $out_fh) = @_;
1500 local *myData = $self;
1502 ## Initialize stuff for the entire document if this is *not*
1503 ## an included file.
1505 ## NOTE: we need to be *very* careful when "defaulting" the output
1506 ## filehandle. We only want to use a default value if this is the
1507 ## beginning of the entire document (but *not* if this is an included
1509 unless (defined $myData{_TOP_STREAM}) {
1510 $out_fh = \*STDOUT unless (defined $out_fh);
1511 $myData{_CUTTING} = 1; ## current "cutting" state
1512 $myData{_INPUT_STREAMS} = []; ## stack of all input streams
1515 ## Initialize input indicators
1516 $myData{_OUTFILE} = '(unknown)' unless (defined $myData{_OUTFILE});
1517 $myData{_OUTPUT} = $out_fh if (defined $out_fh);
1518 $in_fh = \*STDIN unless (defined $in_fh);
1519 $myData{_INFILE} = '(unknown)' unless (defined $myData{_INFILE});
1520 $myData{_INPUT} = $in_fh;
1521 my $input_top = $myData{_TOP_STREAM}
1522 = new Pod::InputSource(
1523 -name => $myData{_INFILE},
1525 -was_cutting => $myData{_CUTTING}
1527 local *input_stack = $myData{_INPUT_STREAMS};
1528 push(@input_stack, $input_top);
1530 ## Perform beginning-of-document and/or beginning-of-input processing
1531 $self->begin_pod() if (@input_stack == 1);
1532 $self->begin_input();
1537 ##---------------------------------------------------------------------------
1541 =head1 B<_pop_input_stream()>
1543 $hashref = $parser->_pop_input_stream();
1545 This takes no arguments. It will perform any necessary end-of-file or
1546 end-of-document processing and then pop the current input stream from
1547 the top of the input stack.
1549 The value returned will be reference to the hash-table that represents
1550 the new top of the input stream stack.
1556 sub _pop_input_stream {
1558 local *myData = $self;
1559 local *input_stack = $myData{_INPUT_STREAMS};
1561 ## Perform end-of-input and/or end-of-document processing
1562 $self->end_input() if (@input_stack > 0);
1563 $self->end_pod() if (@input_stack == 1);
1565 ## Restore cutting state to whatever it was before we started
1566 ## parsing this file.
1567 my $old_top = pop(@input_stack);
1568 $myData{_CUTTING} = $old_top->was_cutting();
1570 ## Dont forget to reset the input indicators
1571 my $input_top = undef;
1572 if (@input_stack > 0) {
1573 $input_top = $myData{_TOP_STREAM} = $input_stack[-1];
1574 $myData{_INFILE} = $input_top->name();
1575 $myData{_INPUT} = $input_top->handle();
1577 delete $myData{_TOP_STREAM};
1578 delete $myData{_INPUT_STREAMS};
1584 #############################################################################
1586 =head1 TREE-BASED PARSING
1588 If straightforward stream-based parsing wont meet your needs (as is
1589 likely the case for tasks such as translating PODs into structured
1590 markup languages like HTML and XML) then you may need to take the
1591 tree-based approach. Rather than doing everything in one pass and
1592 calling the B<interpolate()> method to expand sequences into text, it
1593 may be desirable to instead create a parse-tree using the B<parse_text()>
1594 method to return a tree-like structure which may contain an ordered list
1595 list of children (each of which may be a text-string, or a similar
1596 tree-like structure).
1598 Pay special attention to L<"METHODS FOR PARSING AND PROCESSING"> and
1599 to the objects described in L<Pod::InputObjects>. The former describes
1600 the gory details and parameters for how to customize and extend the
1601 parsing behavior of B<Pod::Parser>. B<Pod::InputObjects> provides
1602 several objects that may all be used interchangeably as parse-trees. The
1603 most obvious one is the B<Pod::ParseTree> object. It defines the basic
1604 interface and functionality that all things trying to be a POD parse-tree
1605 should do. A B<Pod::ParseTree> is defined such that each "node" may be a
1606 text-string, or a reference to another parse-tree. Each B<Pod::Paragraph>
1607 object and each B<Pod::InteriorSequence> object also supports the basic
1608 parse-tree interface.
1610 The B<parse_text()> method takes a given paragraph of text, and
1611 returns a parse-tree that contains one or more children, each of which
1612 may be a text-string, or an InteriorSequence object. There are also
1613 callback-options that may be passed to B<parse_text()> to customize
1614 the way it expands or transforms interior-sequences, as well as the
1615 returned result. These callbacks can be used to create a parse-tree
1616 with custom-made objects (which may or may not support the parse-tree
1617 interface, depending on how you choose to do it).
1619 If you wish to turn an entire POD document into a parse-tree, that process
1620 is fairly straightforward. The B<parse_text()> method is the key to doing
1621 this successfully. Every paragraph-callback (i.e. the polymorphic methods
1622 for B<command()>, B<verbatim()>, and B<textblock()> paragraphs) takes
1623 a B<Pod::Paragraph> object as an argument. Each paragraph object has a
1624 B<parse_tree()> method that can be used to get or set a corresponding
1625 parse-tree. So for each of those paragraph-callback methods, simply call
1626 B<parse_text()> with the options you desire, and then use the returned
1627 parse-tree to assign to the given paragraph object.
1629 That gives you a parse-tree for each paragraph - so now all you need is
1630 an ordered list of paragraphs. You can maintain that yourself as a data
1631 element in the object/hash. The most straightforward way would be simply
1632 to use an array-ref, with the desired set of custom "options" for each
1633 invocation of B<parse_text>. Let's assume the desired option-set is
1634 given by the hash C<%options>. Then we might do something like the
1637 package MyPodParserTree;
1639 @ISA = qw( Pod::Parser );
1645 $self->{'-paragraphs'} = []; ## initialize paragraph list
1649 my ($parser, $command, $paragraph, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
1650 my $ptree = $parser->parse_text({%options}, $paragraph, ...);
1651 $pod_para->parse_tree( $ptree );
1652 push @{ $self->{'-paragraphs'} }, $pod_para;
1656 my ($parser, $paragraph, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
1657 push @{ $self->{'-paragraphs'} }, $pod_para;
1661 my ($parser, $paragraph, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
1662 my $ptree = $parser->parse_text({%options}, $paragraph, ...);
1663 $pod_para->parse_tree( $ptree );
1664 push @{ $self->{'-paragraphs'} }, $pod_para;
1671 my $parser = new MyPodParserTree(...);
1672 $parser->parse_from_file(...);
1673 my $paragraphs_ref = $parser->{'-paragraphs'};
1675 Of course, in this module-author's humble opinion, I'd be more inclined to
1676 use the existing B<Pod::ParseTree> object than a simple array. That way
1677 everything in it, paragraphs and sequences, all respond to the same core
1678 interface for all parse-tree nodes. The result would look something like:
1680 package MyPodParserTree2;
1686 $self->{'-ptree'} = new Pod::ParseTree; ## initialize parse-tree
1690 ## convenience method to get/set the parse-tree for the entire POD
1691 (@_ > 1) and $_[0]->{'-ptree'} = $_[1];
1692 return $_[0]->{'-ptree'};
1696 my ($parser, $command, $paragraph, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
1697 my $ptree = $parser->parse_text({<<options>>}, $paragraph, ...);
1698 $pod_para->parse_tree( $ptree );
1699 $parser->parse_tree()->append( $pod_para );
1703 my ($parser, $paragraph, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
1704 $parser->parse_tree()->append( $pod_para );
1708 my ($parser, $paragraph, $line_num, $pod_para) = @_;
1709 my $ptree = $parser->parse_text({<<options>>}, $paragraph, ...);
1710 $pod_para->parse_tree( $ptree );
1711 $parser->parse_tree()->append( $pod_para );
1718 my $parser = new MyPodParserTree2(...);
1719 $parser->parse_from_file(...);
1720 my $ptree = $parser->parse_tree;
1723 Now you have the entire POD document as one great big parse-tree. You
1724 can even use the B<-expand_seq> option to B<parse_text> to insert
1725 whole different kinds of objects. Just don't expect B<Pod::Parser>
1726 to know what to do with them after that. That will need to be in your
1727 code. Or, alternatively, you can insert any object you like so long as
1728 it conforms to the B<Pod::ParseTree> interface.
1730 One could use this to create subclasses of B<Pod::Paragraphs> and
1731 B<Pod::InteriorSequences> for specific commands (or to create your own
1732 custom node-types in the parse-tree) and add some kind of B<emit()>
1733 method to each custom node/subclass object in the tree. Then all you'd
1734 need to do is recursively walk the tree in the desired order, processing
1735 the children (most likely from left to right) by formatting them if
1736 they are text-strings, or by calling their B<emit()> method if they
1737 are objects/references.
1741 L<Pod::InputObjects>, L<Pod::Select>
1743 B<Pod::InputObjects> defines POD input objects corresponding to
1744 command paragraphs, parse-trees, and interior-sequences.
1746 B<Pod::Select> is a subclass of B<Pod::Parser> which provides the ability
1747 to selectively include and/or exclude sections of a POD document from being
1748 translated based upon the current heading, subheading, subsubheading, etc.
1751 B<Pod::Callbacks> is a subclass of B<Pod::Parser> which gives its users
1752 the ability the employ I<callback functions> instead of, or in addition
1753 to, overriding methods of the base class.
1756 B<Pod::Select> and B<Pod::Callbacks> do not override any
1757 methods nor do they define any new methods with the same name. Because
1758 of this, they may I<both> be used (in combination) as a base class of
1759 the same subclass in order to combine their functionality without
1760 causing any namespace clashes due to multiple inheritance.
1764 Brad Appleton E<lt>bradapp@enteract.comE<gt>
1766 Based on code for B<Pod::Text> written by
1767 Tom Christiansen E<lt>tchrist@mox.perl.comE<gt>