[Mono-dev] Back from extended absence

[Robert Wilkens]

Ok, I had some havoc in my life the last couple of weeks, and i needed a vacation after my vacation.

I had implemented a fix for bug 2663 (the regex one) which I'm not sure the status of because i had unsubscribed from this list and i am still unsubscribed from all github alerts.. I just needed time away from the computer..  I know it was implemented, but someone found with particular cases it was particularly slow.  I have an idea what needs to be done now to fix it -- because while i was on vacation before i had a computer meltdown I discovered that there were cases where it was trying the same 'combos' over and over again and there is a way to fix this -- i just don't know if someone backed out that change or someone already fixed it or it still is in limbo.  

Thinking about it -- I have to re-evaluate the CheckComboMatch function.  It needs to make sure if we've gone down a particular path and DIED with no further matches, that we do not continue to go down that same path again.  This may be as simple as detecting a match with everything up until the final already-existing-combo (where it ended) and if we match to where it ended, raise a flag which says do not try any more alternative or evaluations for this condition.  That is, if we had a1, b2, c3, d4 -- where a,b,c,d are ors and 1,2,3,4 are pointers to the string position -- and we matched a combo of a1, b2, c3 as tries, I have to make sure that the next go round when we get to a1, b2 we don't try different combinations for c3 again and instead just fail because we've at that point tried all combinations if and only if c3 is at the LAST position in the combo list in any particular list of combos.  This will result in the next combo added to the list being a1,b2 and if b2 gets hit again we'll do the same thing adding only a1 to the list, and if a1 fails as the last one on the list, voila we die quickly having found nothing.  Believe it or not, given existing code, this shouldn't be that hard to do.  I just need time to do it.

It's the weekend, i probably won't get anything done..  I am so out of touch with coding after a few weeks off that i need to get back in touch.

If someone else understands what i'm saying here, and wants to fix it themselves, feel free but let me know.  Also if someone knows the status of this bug i'd also appreciate any updates because again i haven't been tracking github.

Believe it or not a combination of things got me back here today, call it fate:
(1) My AM New York horoscope said 'there was more work to do' that i had to get back to…. and it even told me to step back and look at the problem differently until it was solved.  I think i did and have a better solution.  By stepping back, i think i mean in this case, i needed to work it out in this e-mail rather than just hacking away at code.
(2) The book on confidence i was reading tonight questioned whether i let roadblocks get in my way, and i let this particular road block stop me from coding for a while.

I am back subscribed to this list again after a few weeks off.  I'll try not to get too annoying, but i want to have something to do and i need some challenges.  I just want to do better than i did on that particular issue.

Thanks!  And if anyone wants to tell me to get lost, feel free.

-rob