/ $foo:=(abc) $bar:=(def) /
Am I misreading, or are you suggesting that $foo may contain 'abc' after running this example, even if the match wasn't successful?
No. I re-checked with Larry this morning and he confirmed that all bindings in rules only "stick" if the rule as a whole succeeds.
What I was trying (obviously rather ineptly ;-) to point out is that we have to be able to differentiate between the the match object's own internal hypothetical variables ($?foo, $?bar, @?baz) and any external-but-temporarily-hypothesized variables ($foo, $bar, @baz).
The syntax we've chosen to do that requires the use of "?" as a secondary sigil on internal variables. So, since named subrules that capture always capture to internal variables, it's natural and consistent to use "?" to indicate capturing subrules as well.
Damian
