FunctX XSLT Function Library > Sequences > Distinct Values >

functx:distinct-nodes

The distinct XML nodes in a sequence (by node identity)

Description

The functx:distinct-nodes function returns the distinct nodes (based on node identity) in a sequence. It does this without resorting them in document order (it takes the first occurrence of each distinct node).It is different from the built-in fn:distinct-values function in that it returns nodes rather than atomic values, and it does not take into account the values (content) of the nodes, just their identity.

Note: if you want them to be resorted in document order, or you don't care, you can simply use the expression "$nodes/." (without the quotes), which works because the slash operator removes duplicates and resorts. The "." in the expression returns the node itself.

Arguments and Return Type

XSLT Function Declaration

<xsl:function name="functx:distinct-nodes" as="node()*"
              xmlns:functx="http://www.functx.com">
  <xsl:param name="nodes" as="node()*"/>

  <xsl:sequence select="
    for $seq in (1 to count($nodes))
    return $nodes[$seq][not(functx:is-node-in-sequence(
                                .,$nodes[position() &lt; $seq]))]
 "/>

</xsl:function>

Examples

<test>
  <child>1</child>
  <child>2</child>
  <child>3</child>
  <child>3</child>
</test>

functx:distinct-nodes(
     ($in-xml/child, $in-xml/*) )

<child>1</child>
<child>2</child>
<child>3</child>
<child>3</child>

functx:distinct-nodes(
     ($in-xml/child[3], $in-xml/*) )

<child>3</child>
<child>1</child>
<child>2</child>
<child>3</child>

Depends On

See Also

History