quantifier minimizer

[yawnmoth]

The ? symbol serves a number of purposes in PCRE. The quantifer
minimizer usage is the one I'm currious about. Specifically, the
output from a test script isn't what I'm expecting, and I'm wondering
why.

Here's the script:

<?
echo preg_replace('#.*?b#','','aabbc');
?>

Based on my understanding of the quantifer minimizer, the output should
be bc. However, running this results in c being outputted. As such, I
guess I'm just not understanding what ? as a quantifer minimizer is
supposed to do. Could someone explain it to me?

[John Dunlop]

yawnmoth wrote:

<?
echo preg_replace('#.*?b#','','aabbc');
?>

Based on my understanding of the quantifer minimizer, the output should
be bc. However, running this results in c being outputted.

Your understanding of <?> is probably spot on but you've just
overlooked the Kleene Star. There's in fact two replacements
here. The first is the one you expected, the replacement of
<aab> with the empty string. The second is the replacement of
<b> - the second <b>. The quantifier <*> means zero or more;
and so in the second replacement, <.*> matches nothing while
the <b> matches.

--
Jock