Hello,
I am attempting to make a local copy of a node (including its siblings and descendants) so as to preserve the original for other processing needs. If I do the following:

<xsl:call-template name="actorTotal">
<xsl:with-param name="node" select="ownedMember"/>
<xsl:with-param name="actorCount" select="0"/>
</xsl:call-template>

where "ownedMember is the source node-set, then in the named template:

<xsl:template name="actorTotal">
<xsl:param name="node"/>
<xsl:param name="actorCount"/>
</xsl:template>

the node named "node" turns out to be a single node, without the corresponding sibs and descendants. I cannot figure out how to copy the entire not-set. I have the general idea that "xsl:copy-of" would be useful to me, but I cannot figure out the correct syntax for copying the entire node-set. Thanks in advance for any assistance.

I can't really see why you need to make a copy of the nodes, since trees in XSLT are immutable (even if you use xsl:copy-of, there's a risk that the XSLT processor won't make a physical copy, because it's allowed to assume that the original nodes aren't going to change). However, what you are doing is simply passing a reference to the node at the top of the subtree.

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/
Author, XSLT Programmer's Reference and XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference

The problem is that I need to recurse the node-set in one named template, and then recurse the same node-set a second for another named template. What do you suggest I do instead of copying? I am assuming you think I should recurse using the input node set. If this is the case, what is the best way to get back to my original context before recursing the node-set again in the second named template?

thank you

I'm having difficulty understanding your difficulty. When you return from a named template, the context is exactly what it was before you called that template.

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/
Author, XSLT Programmer's Reference and XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference

Sorry for being dense.. How then do I pass the entire sub-tree to the named template, rather than the reference to the single node?

You don't. You pass a reference to a single node, and the called template then uses XPath expressions to navigate from that node to any other nodes it is interested in.

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/
Author, XSLT Programmer's Reference and XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference

(Incidentally, I don't think you're being dense at all. You're having exactly the same kind of conceptual hurdles that I always encounter when learning a new technology, because you're asking penetrating questions about it rather than just blindly copying specimen code like so many people do.)

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/
Author, XSLT Programmer's Reference and XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference

thanks for your patient words.. ok, so I comprehend how the node reference I am passing has all I need to recurse the sub-tree, provided I use the appropriate XPath syntax. So, along those lines, I essentially have a recursive template as follows:

<xsl:template name="actorTotal">
<xsl:param name="node"/>
<xsl:param name="actorCount"/>

<xsl:choose>
<xsl:when test="@xsi:type='uml:Actor'">
<xsl:call-template name="actorTotal">
<xsl:with-param name="node" select="$node[position() + 1]"/>
<xsl:with-param name="actorCount" select="$actorCount + 1"/>

... (more stuff here)


I would have expected (given my limited XSLT experience) that $node[position() + 1] would have passed a reference to the next node in the list, but it doesn't work. Would you be able to tell me what I am doing wrong? I have been struggling with this most of the day now

thank you

>$node[position() + 1]

Within square brackets the context changes, so position() inside the brackets doesn't give the same result as outside. In fact $node[x] where x is a number means $node[position()=x], so you are asking for $node[position() = position()+1], which selects nothing.

>the next node in the list

what do you mean by "the list"? If you want the node that is the next child of the same parent node, use $node/following-sibling::*[1].

Michael Kay
http://www.saxonica.com/
Author, XSLT Programmer's Reference and XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference

thank you so much for your generous time and patience. However, it still is not working. Here is the exact syntax as I understood you to have communicated to me:

<xsl:call-template name="actorTotal">
<xsl:with-param name="node" select="$node/following-sibling::*[1]"/>

...more stuff..

any other ideas what I might be doing wrong?? thanks so much!