-# $Id: ZOOM.pod,v 1.6 2005-11-16 16:39:25 mike Exp $
+# $Id: ZOOM.pod,v 1.18 2005-12-13 14:53:08 mike Exp $
use strict;
use warnings;
$conn = new ZOOM::Connection("indexdata.dk:210/gils");
print("server is '", $conn->option("serverImplementationName"), "'\n");
$conn->option(preferredRecordSyntax => "usmarc");
- $conn->option_binary(iconBlob => "foo\0bar");
- $rs = $conn->search_pqf('@attr 1=4 mineral');/usr/local/src/mike/records/acc-ounts/cheques-
+ $rs = $conn->search_pqf('@attr 1=4 mineral');
$ss = $conn->scan('@attr 1=1003 a');
if ($conn->errcode() != 0) {
die("somthing went wrong: " . $conn->errmsg())
Support for SRU will follow in the fullness of time.
-=head4 create()
+If an error occurs, an exception is thrown. This may indicate a
+networking problem (e.g. the host is not found or unreachable), or a
+protocol-level problem (e.g. a Z39.50 server rejected the Init
+request).
+
+=head4 create() / connect()
+
+ $options = new ZOOM::Options();
+ $options->option(implementationName => "my client");
+ $conn = create ZOOM::Connection($options)
+ $conn->connect($host, 0);
+
+The usual Connection constructor, C<new()> brings a new object into
+existence and forges the connection to the server all in one
+operation, which is often what you want. For applications that need
+more control, however, these two method separate the two steps,
+allowing additional steps in between such as the setting of options.
-=head4 connect()
+C<create()> creates and returns a new Connection object, which is
+I<not> connected to any server. It may be passed an options block, of
+type C<ZOOM::Options> (see below), into which options may be set
+before or after the creation of the Connection. The connection to the
+server may then be forged by the C<connect()> method, the arguments of
+which are the same as those of the C<new()> constructor.
=head4 error_x() / errcode() / errmsg() / addinfo() / diagset()
+ ($errcode, $errmsg, $addinfo, $diagset) = $conn->error_x();
+ $errcode = $conn->errcode();
+ $errmsg = $conn->errmsg();
+ $addinfo = $conn->addinfo();
+ $diagset = $conn->diagset();
+
+These methods may be used to obtain information about the last error
+to have occurred on a connection - although typically they will not
+been used, as the same information is available through the
+C<ZOOM::Exception> that is thrown when the error occurs. The
+C<errcode()>,
+C<errmsg()>,
+C<addinfo()>
+and
+C<diagset()>
+methods each return one element of the diagnostic, and
+C<error_x()>
+returns all four at once.
+
+See the C<ZOOM::Exception> for the interpretation of these elements.
+
=head4 option() / option_binary()
+ print("server is '", $conn->option("serverImplementationName"), "'\n");
+ $conn->option(preferredRecordSyntax => "usmarc");
+ $conn->option_binary(iconBlob => "foo\0bar");
+ die if length($conn->option_binary("iconBlob") != 7);
+
+Objects of the Connection, ResultSet, ScanSet and Package classes
+carry with them a set of named options which affect their behaviour in
+certain ways. See the ZOOM-C options documentation for details:
+
+Connection options are listed at
+http://indexdata.com/yaz/doc/zoom.tkl#zoom.connections
+
+These options are set and fetched using the C<option()> method, which
+may be called with either one or two arguments. In the two-argument
+form, the option named by the first argument is set to the value of
+the second argument, and its old value is returned. In the
+one-argument form, the value of the specified option is returned.
+
+For historical reasons, option values are not binary-clean, so that a
+value containing a NUL byte will be returned in truncated form. The
+C<option_binary()> method behaves identically to C<option()> except
+that it is binary-clean, so that values containing NUL bytes are set
+and returned correctly.
+
=head4 search() / search_pqf()
+ $rs = $conn->search(new ZOOM::Query::CQL('title=dinosaur'));
+ # The next two lines are equivalent
+ $rs = $conn->search(new ZOOM::Query::PQF('@attr 1=4 dinosaur'));
+ $rs = $conn->search_pqf('@attr 1=4 dinosaur');
+
+The principal purpose of a search-and-retrieve protocol is searching
+(and, er, retrieval), so the principal method used on a Connection
+object is C<search()>. It accepts a single argument, a C<ZOOM::Query>
+object (or, more precisely, an object of a subclass of this class);
+and it creates and returns a new ResultSet object representing the set
+of records resulting from the search.
+
+Since queries using PQF (Prefix Query Format) are so common, we make
+them a special case by providing a C<search_prefix()> method. This is
+identical to C<search()> except that it accepts a string containing
+the query rather than an object, thereby obviating the need to create
+a C<ZOOM::Query::PQF> object. See the documentation of that class for
+information about PQF.
+
=head4 scan()
+Many Z39.50 servers allow you to browse their indexes to find terms to
+search for. This is done using the C<scan> method, which creates and
+returns a new ScanSet object representing the set of terms resulting
+from the scan.
+
+C<scan()> takes a single argument, but it has to work hard: it
+specifies both what index to scan for terms, and where in the index to
+start scanning. What's more, the specification of what index to scan
+includes multiple facets, such as what database fields it's an index
+of (author, subject, title, etc.) and whether to scan for whole fields
+or single words (e.g. the title ``I<The Empire Strikes Back>'', or the
+four words ``Back'', ``Empire'', ``Strikes'' and ``The'', interleaved
+with words from other titles in the same index.
+
+All of this is done by using a single term from the PQF query as the
+C<scan()> argument. (At present, only PQF is supported, although
+there is no reason in principle why CQL and other query syntaxes
+should not be supported in future). The attributes associated with
+the term indicate which index is to be used, and the term itself
+indicates the point in the index at which to start the scan. For
+example, if the argument is C<@attr 1=4 fish>, then
+
+=over 4
+
+=item @attr 1=4
+
+This is the BIB-1 attribute with type 1 (meaning access-point, which
+specifies an index), and type 4 (which means ``title''). So the scan
+is in the title index.
+
+=item fish
+
+Start the scan from the lexicographically earliest term that is equal
+to or falls after ``fish''.
+
+=back
+
+The argument C<@attr 1=4 @attr 6=3 fish> would behave similarly; but
+the BIB-1 attribute 6=3 mean completeness=``complete field'', so the
+scan would be for complete titles rather than for words occurring in
+titles.
+
+This takes a bit of getting used to.
+
+The behaviour is C<scan()> is affected by the following options, which
+may be set on the Connection through which the scan is done:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item number [default: 10]
+
+Indicates how many terms should be returned in the ScanSet. The
+number actually returned may be less, if the start-point is near the
+end of the index, but will not be greater.
+
+=item position [default: 1]
+
+A 1-based index specifying where in the returned list of terms the
+seed-term should appear. By default it should be the first term
+returned, but C<position> may be set, for example, to zero (requesting
+the next terms I<after> the seed-term), or to the same value as
+C<number> (requesting the index terms I<before> the seed term).
+
+=item stepSize [default: 0]
+
+An integer indicating how many indexed terms are to be skipped between
+each one returned in the ScanSet. By default, no terms are skipped,
+but overriding this can be useful to get a high-level overview of the
+index.
+
+=back
+
=head4 package()
+ $p = $conn->package();
+ $o = new ZOOM::Options();
+ $o->option(databaseName => "newdb");
+ $p = $conn->package($o);
+
+Creates and returns a new C<ZOOM::Package>, to be used in invoking an
+Extended Service. An options block may optionally be passed in. See
+the C<ZOOM::Package> documentation.
+
=head4 destroy()
+ $conn->destroy()
+
+Destroys a Connection object, tearing down any low-level connection
+associated with it and freeing its resources. It is an error to reuse
+a Connection that has been C<destroy()>ed.
+
=head2 ZOOM::ResultSet
-I<###>
+ $rs = $conn->search_pqf('@attr 1=4 mineral');
+ $n = $rs->size();
+ for $i (1 .. $n) {
+ $rec = $rs->record($i-1);
+ print $rec->render();
+ }
+
+A ResultSet object represents the set of zero or more records
+resulting from a search, and is the means whereby these records can be
+retrieved. A ResultSet object may maintain client side cache or some,
+less, none, all or more of the server's records: in general, this is
+supposed to an implementaton detail of no interest to a typical
+application, although more sophisticated applications do have
+facilities for messing with the cache. Most applications will only
+need the C<size()>, C<record()> and C<sort()> methods.
+
+There is no C<new()> method nor any other explicit constructor. The
+only way to create a new ResultSet is by using C<search()> (or
+C<search_prefix()>) on a Connection.
+
+See the description of the C<Result Set> class in the ZOOM Abstract
+API at
+http://zoom.z3950.org/api/zoom-current.html#3.4
+
+=head3 Methods
+
+=head4 option()
+
+ $rs->option(elementSetName => "f");
+
+Allows options to be set into, and read from, a ResultSet, just like
+the Connection class's C<option()> method. There is no
+C<option_binary()> method for ResultSet objects.
+
+ResultSet options are listed at
+http://indexdata.com/yaz/doc/zoom.resultsets.tkl
+
+=head4 size()
+
+ print "Found ", $rs->size(), " records\n";
+
+Returns the number of records in the result set.
+
+=head4 record() / record_immediate()
+
+ $rec = $rs->record(0);
+ $rec2 = $rs->record_immediate(0);
+ $rec3 = $rs->record_immediate(1)
+ or print "second record wasn't in cache\n";
+
+The C<record()> method returns a C<ZOOM::Record> object representing
+a record from result-set, whose position is indicated by the argument
+passed in. This is a zero-based index, so that legitimate values
+range from zero to C<$rs->size()-1>.
+
+The C<record_immediate()> API is identical, but it never invokes a
+network operation, merely returning the record from the ResultSet's
+cache if it's already there, or an undefined value otherwise. So if
+you use this method, B<you must always check the return value>.
+
+=head4 records()
+
+ $rs->records(0, 10, 0);
+ for $i (0..10) {
+ print $rs->record_immediate($i)->render();
+ }
+
+ @nextseven = $rs->records(10, 7, 1);
+
+The C<record_immediate()> method only fetches records from the cache,
+whereas C<record()> fetches them from the server if they have not
+already been cached; but the ZOOM module has to guess what the most
+efficient strategy for this is. It might fetch each record, alone
+when asked for: that's optimal in an application that's only
+interested in the top hit from each search, but pessimal for one that
+wants to display a whole list of results. Conversely, the software's
+strategy might be always to ask for blocks of a twenty records:
+that's great for assembling long lists of things, but wasteful when
+only one record is wanted. The problem is that the ZOOM module can't
+tell, when you call C<$rs->record()>, what your intention is.
+
+But you can tell it. The C<records()> method fetches a sequence of
+records, all in one go. It takes three arguments: the first is the
+zero-based index of the first record in the sequence, the second is
+the number of records to fetch, and the third is a boolean indication
+of whether or not to return the retrieved records as well as adding
+them to the cache. (You can always pass 1 for this if you like, and
+Perl will discard the unused return value, but there is a small
+efficiency gain to be had by passing 0.)
+
+Once the records have been retrieved from the server
+(i.e. C<records()> has completed without throwing an exception), they
+can be fetched much more efficiently using C<record()> - or
+C<record_immediate()>, which is then guaranteed to succeed.
+
+=head4 cache_reset()
+
+ $rs->cache_reset()
+
+Resets the ResultSet's record cache, so that subsequent invocations of
+C<record_immediate()> will fail. I struggle to imagine a real
+scenario where you'd want to do this.
+
+=head4 sort()
+
+ if ($rs->sort("yaz", "1=4 >i 1=21 >s") < 0) {
+ die "sort failed";
+ }
+
+Sorts the ResultSet in place (discarding any cached records, as they
+will in general be sorted into a different position). There are two
+arguments: the first is a string indicating the type of the
+sort-specification, and the second is the specification itself.
+
+The C<sort()> method returns 0 on success, or -1 if the
+sort-specification is invalid.
+
+At present, the only supported sort-specification type is C<yaz>.
+Such a specification consists of a space-separated sequence of keys,
+each of which itself consists of two space-separated words (so that
+the total number of words in the sort-specification is even). The two
+words making up each key are a field and a set of flags. The field
+can take one of two forms: if it contains an C<=> sign, then it is a
+BIB-1 I<type>=I<value> pair specifying which field to sort
+(e.g. C<1=4> for a title sort); otherwise it is sent for the server to
+interpret as best it can. The word of flags is made up from one or
+more of the following: C<s> for case sensitive, C<i> for case
+insensitive; C<<> for ascending order and C<E<gt>> for descending
+order.
+
+For example, the sort-specification in the code-fragment above will
+sort the records in C<$rs> case-insensitively in descending order of
+title, with records having equivalent titles sorted case-sensitively
+in ascending order of subject. (The BIB-1 access points 4 and 21
+represent title and subject respectively.)
+
+=head4 destroy()
+
+ $rs->destroy()
+
+Destroys a ResultSet object, freeing its resources. It is an error to
+reuse a ResultSet that has been C<destroy()>ed.
=head2 ZOOM::Record
-I<###>
+ $rec = $rs->record($i);
+ print $rec->render();
+ $raw = $rec->raw();
+ $marc = new_from_usmarc MARC::Record($raw);
+ print "Record title is: ", $marc->title(), "\n";
+
+A Record object represents a record that has been retrived from the
+server.
+
+There is no C<new()> method nor any other explicit constructor. The
+only way to create a new Record is by using C<record()> (or
+C<record_immediate()>, or C<records()>) on a ResultSet.
+
+In general, records are ``owned'' by their result-sets that they were
+retrieved from, so they do not have to be explicitly memory-managed:
+they are deallocated (and therefore can no longer be used) when the
+result-set is destroyed.
+
+See the description of the C<Record> class in the ZOOM Abstract
+API at
+http://zoom.z3950.org/api/zoom-current.html#3.5
+
+=head3 Methods
+
+=head4 render()
+
+ print $rec->render()
+
+Returns a human-readable representation of the record. Beyond that,
+no promises are made: careful programs should not make assumptions
+about the format of the returned string.
+
+This method is useful mostly for debugging.
+
+=head4 raw()
+
+ use MARC::Record
+ $raw = $rec->raw();
+ $marc = new_from_usmarc MARC::Record($raw);
+
+Returns an opaque blob of data that is the raw form of the record.
+Exactly what this is, and what you can do with it, varies depending on
+the record-syntax. For example, XML records will be returned as,
+well, XML; MARC records will be returned as ISO 2709-encoded blocks
+that can be decoded by software such as the fine C<Marc::Record>
+module; GRS-1 record will be ... gosh, what an interesting question.
+But no-one uses GRS-1 any more, do they?
+
+=head4 clone() / destroy()
+
+ $rec = $rs->record($i);
+ $newrec = $rec->clone();
+ $rs->destroy();
+ print $newrec->render();
+ $newrec->destroy();
+
+Usually, it's convenient that Record objects are owned by their
+ResultSets and go away when the ResultSet is destroyed; but
+occasionally you need a Record to outlive its parent and destroy it
+later, explicitly. To do this, C<clone()> the record, keep the new
+Record object that is returned, and C<destroy()> it when it's no
+longer needed. This is B<only> situation in which a Record needs to
+be destroyed.
=head2 ZOOM::Exception
main code in an C<eval{}> block and checking C<$@> on exit from that
block, as in the code-sample above.
-There are a small number of exceptions to this rule.
-I<###>
+There are a small number of exceptions to this rule: the three
+record-fetching methods in the C<ZOOM::ResultSet> class,
+C<record()>,
+C<record_immediate()>,
+and
+C<records()>
+can all return undefined values for legitimate reasons, under
+circumstances that do not merit throwing an exception. For this
+reason, the return values of these methods should be checked. See the
+individual methods' documentation for details.
+
+An exception carries the following pieces of information:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item error-code
+
+A numeric code that specifies the type of error. This can be checked
+for equality with known values, so that intelligent applications can
+take appropriate action.
+
+=item error-message
+
+A human-readable message corresponding with the code. This can be
+shown to users, but its value should not be tested, as it could vary
+in different versions or under different locales.
+
+=item additional information [optional]
+
+A string containing information specific to the error-code. For
+example, when the error-code is the BIB-1 diagnostic 109 ("Database
+unavailable"), the additional information is the name of the database
+that the application tried to use. For some error-codes, there is no
+additional information at all; for some others, the additional
+information is undefined and may just be an human-readable string.
+
+=item diagnostic set [optional]
+
+A short string specifying the diagnostic set from which the error-code
+was drawn: for example, C<ZOOM> for a ZOOM-specific error such as
+C<ZOOM::Error::MEMORY> ("out of memory"), and C<BIB-1> for a Z39.50
+error-code drawn from the BIB-1 diagnostic set.
+
+=back
+
+In theory, the error-code should be interpreted in the context of the
+diagnostic set from which it is drawn; in practice, nearly all errors
+are from either the ZOOM or BIB-1 diagnostic sets, and the codes in
+those sets have been chosen so as not to overlap, so the diagnostic
+set can usually be ignored.
+
+See the description of the C<Exception> class in the ZOOM Abstract
+API at
+http://zoom.z3950.org/api/zoom-current.html#3.7
+
+=head3 Methods
+
+=head4 new()
+
+ die new ZOOM::Exception($errcode, $errmsg, $addinfo, $diagset);
+
+Creates and returns a new Exception object with the specified
+error-code, error-message, additional information and diagnostic set.
+Applications will not in general need to use this, but may find it
+useful to simulate ZOOM exceptions. As is usual with Perl, exceptions
+are thrown using C<die()>.
+
+=head4 code() / message() / addinfo() / diagset()
+
+ print "Error ", $@->code(), ": ", $@->message(), "\n";
+ print "(addinfo '", $@->addinfo(), "', set '", $@->diagset(), "')\n";
+
+These methods, of no arguments, return the exception's error-code,
+error-message, additional information and diagnostic set respectively.
+
+=head4 render()
+
+ print $@->render();
+
+Returns a human-readable rendition of an exception. The C<"">
+operator is overloaded on the Exception class, so that an Exception
+used in a string context is automatically rendered. Among other
+consequences, this has the useful result that a ZOOM application that
+died due to an uncaught exception will emit an informative message
+before exiting.
=head2 ZOOM::ScanSet
-I<###>
+ $ss = $conn->scan('@attr 1=1003 a');
+ $n = $ss->size();
+ ($term, $occ) = $ss->term($n-1);
+ $rs = $conn->search_pqf('@attr 1=1003 "' . $term . "'");
+ assert($rs->size() == $occ);
+
+A ScanSet represents a set of candidate search-terms returned from an
+index scan. Its sole purpose is to provide access to those term, to
+the corresponding display terms, and to the occurrence-counts of the
+terms.
+
+There is no C<new()> method nor any other explicit constructor. The
+only way to create a new ScanSet is by using C<scan()> on a
+Connection.
+
+See the description of the C<Scan Set> class in the ZOOM Abstract
+API at
+http://zoom.z3950.org/api/zoom-current.html#3.6
+
+=head3 Methods
+
+=head4 size()
+
+ print "Found ", $ss->size(), " terms\n";
+
+Returns the number of terms in the scan set. In general, this will be
+the scan-set size requested by the C<number> option in the Connection
+on which the scan was performed [default 10], but it may be fewer if
+the scan is close to the end of the index.
+
+=head4 term() / display_term()
+
+ $ss = $conn->scan('@attr 1=1004 whatever');
+ ($term, $occurrences) = $ss->term(0);
+ ($displayTerm, $occurrences2) = $ss->display_term(0);
+ assert($occurrences == $occurrences2);
+ if (user_likes_the_look_of($displayTerm)) {
+ $rs = $conn->search_pqf('@attr 1=4 "' . $term . '"');
+ assert($rs->size() == $occurrences);
+ }
+
+These methods return the scanned terms themselves. C<term()> returns
+the term is a form suitable for submitting as part of a query, whereas
+C<display_term()> returns it in a form suitable for displaying to a
+user. Both versions also return the number of occurrences of the term
+in the index, i.e. the number of hits that will be found if the term
+is subsequently used in a query.
+
+In most cases, the term and display term will be identical; however,
+they may be different in cases where punctuation or case is
+normalised, or where identifiers rather than the original document
+terms are indexed.
+
+=head4 option()
+
+ print "scan status is ", $ss->option("scanStatus");
+
+Allows options to be set into, and read from, a ScanSet, just like
+the Connection class's C<option()> method. There is no
+C<option_binary()> method for ScanSet objects.
+
+ScanSet options are also described, though not particularly
+informatively, at
+http://indexdata.com/yaz/doc/zoom.scan.tkl
+
+=head4 destroy()
+
+ $ss->destroy()
+
+Destroys a ScanSet object, freeing its resources. It is an error to
+reuse a ScanSet that has been C<destroy()>ed.
=head2 ZOOM::Package
-I<###>
+ $p = $conn->package();
+ $p->option(action => "specialUpdate");
+ $p->option(recordIdOpaque => 145);
+ $p->option(record => content_of("/tmp/record.xml"));
+ $p->send("update");
+ $p->destroy();
+
+This class represents an Extended Services Package: an instruction to
+the server to do something not covered by the core parts of the Z39.50
+standard (or the equivalent in SRW or SRU). Since the core protocols
+are read-only, such requests are often used to make changes to the
+database, such as in the record update example above.
+
+Requesting an extended service is a four-step process: first, create a
+package associated with the connection to the relevant database;
+second, set options on the package to instruct the server on what to
+do; third, send the package (which may result in an exception being
+thrown if the server cannot execute the requested operations; and
+finally, destroy the package.
+
+Package options are listed at
+http://indexdata.com/yaz/doc/zoom.ext.html
+
+The particular options that have meaning are determined by the
+top-level operation string specified as the argument to C<send()>.
+For example, when the operation is C<update> (the most commonly used
+extended service), the C<action> option may be set to any of
+C<recordInsert>
+(add a new record, failing if that record already exists),
+C<recordDelete>
+(delete a record, failing if it is not in the database).
+C<recordReplace>
+(replace a record, failing if an old version is not already present)
+or
+C<specialUpdate>
+(add a record, replacing any existing version that may be present).
+
+For update, the C<record> option should be set to the full text of the
+XML record to added, deleted or replaced. Depending on how the server
+is configured, it may extract the record's unique ID from the text
+(i.e. from a known element such as the C<001> field of a MARCXML
+record), or it may require the unique ID to passed in explicitly using
+the C<recordIdOpaque> option.
+
+Extended services packages are B<not currently described> in the ZOOM
+Abstract API at
+http://zoom.z3950.org/api/zoom-current.html
+They will be added in a forthcoming version, and will function much
+as those implemented in this module.
+
+=head3 Methods
+
+=head4 option()
+
+ $p->option(recordIdOpaque => "46696f6e61");
+
+Allows options to be set into, and read from, a Package, just like
+the Connection class's C<option()> method. There is no
+C<option_binary()> method for Package objects.
+
+Package options are listed at
+http://indexdata.com/yaz/doc/zoom.ext.tkl
+
+=head4 send()
+
+ $p->send("createdb");
+
+Sends a package to the server associated with the Connection that
+created it. Problems are reported by throwing an exception. The
+single parameter indicates the operation that the server is being
+requested to perform, and controls the interpretation of the package's
+options. Valid operations include:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item itemorder
+
+Request a copy of a nominated object, e.g. place an ILL request.
+
+=item create
+
+Create a new database, the name of which is specified by the
+C<databaseName> option.
+
+=item drop
+
+Drop an existing database, the name of which is specified by the
+C<databaseName> option.
+
+=item commit
+
+Commit changes made to the database within a transaction.
+
+=item update
+
+Modify the contents of the database by adding, deleting or replacing
+records (as described above in the overview of the C<ZOOM::Package>
+class).
+
+=item xmlupdate
+
+I have no idea what this does.
+
+=back
+
+Although the module is capable of I<making> all these requests, not
+all servers are capable of I<executing> them. Refusal is indicated by
+throwing an exception. Problems may also be caused by lack of
+privileges; so C<send()> must be used with caution, and is perhaps
+best wrapped in a clause that checks for execptions, like so:
+
+ eval { $p->send("create") };
+ if ($@ && $@->isa("ZOOM::Exception")) {
+ print "Oops! ", $@->message(), "\n";
+ return $@->code();
+ }
+
+=head4 destroy()
+
+ $p->destroy()
+
+Destroys a Package object, freeing its resources. It is an error to
+reuse a Package that has been C<destroy()>ed.
=head2 ZOOM::Query
-I<###>
+ $q = new ZOOM::Query::CQL("creator=pike and subject=unix");
+ $q->sortby("1=4 >i 1=21 >s");
+ $rs = $conn->search($q);
+ $q->destroy();
+
+C<ZOOM::Query> is a virtual base class from which various concrete
+subclasses can be derived. Different subclasses implement different
+types of query. The sole purpose of a Query object is to be used in a
+C<search()> on a Connection; because PQF is such a common special
+case, the shortcut Connection method C<search_pqf()> is provided.
+
+The following Query subclasses are provided, both of the providing the
+same set of methods described below:
+
+=over 4
+
+=item ZOOM::Query::PQF
+
+Implements Prefix Query Format (PQF), also sometimes known as Prefix
+Query Notation (PQN). This esoteric but rigorous and expressive
+format is described in the YAZ Manual at
+http://indexdata.com/yaz/doc/tools.tkl#PQF
+
+=item ZOOM::Query::CQL
+
+Implements the Common Query Language (CQL) of SRU, the Search/Retrieve
+URL. CQL is a much friendlier notation than PQF, using a simple infix
+notation. The queries are passed ``as is'' to the server rather than
+being compiled into a Z39.50 Type-1 query, so only CQL-compliant
+servers can support such querier. CQL is described at
+http://www.loc.gov/standards/sru/cql/
+and in a slight out-of-date but nevertheless useful tutorial at
+http://zing.z3950.org/cql/intro.html
+
+=back
+
+=head3 Methods
+
+=head4 new()
+
+ $q = new ZOOM::Query::CQL('title=dinosaur'));
+ $q = new ZOOM::Query::PQF('@attr 1=4 dinosaur'));
+
+Creates a new query object, compiling the query passed as its argument
+according to the rules of the particular query-type being
+instantiated. If compilation fails, an exception is thrown.
+Otherwise, the query may be passed to the C<Connection> method
+<search()>.
+
+=head4 sortby()
+
+ $q->sortby("1=4 >i 1=21 >s");
+
+Sets a sort specification into the query, so that when a C<search()>
+is run on the query, the result is automatically sorted. The sort
+specification language is the same as the C<yaz> sort-specification
+type of the C<ResultSet> method C<sort()>, described above.
+
+I<### It should be possible to sort by CQL query, too.>
+
+=head4 destroy()
+
+ $p->destroy()
+
+Destroys a Query object, freeing its resources. It is an error to
+reuse a Query that has been C<destroy()>ed.
=head2 ZOOM::Options
C<QUERY_CQL>,
C<QUERY_PQF>,
C<SORTBY>,
-C<CLONE>
+C<CLONE>,
+C<PACKAGE>
and
-C<PACKAGE>,
-each of which specifies a client-side error. Since errors may also be
-diagnosed by the server, and returned to the client, error codes may
-also take values from the BIB-1 diagnostic set of Z39.50, listed at
-the Z39.50 Maintenance Agency's web-site at
+C<SCANTERM>,
+each of which specifies a client-side error. These codes constitute
+the C<ZOOM> diagnostic set.
+
+Since errors may also be diagnosed by the server, and returned to the
+client, error codes may also take values from the BIB-1 diagnostic set
+of Z39.50, listed at the Z39.50 Maintenance Agency's web-site at
http://www.loc.gov/z3950/agency/defns/bib1diag.html
All error-codes, whether client-side from the C<ZOOM::Error>
The C<Net::Z3950::ZOOM> module, included in the same distribution as this one.
The C<Net::Z3950> module, which this one supersedes.
+http://perl.z3950.org/
The documentation for the ZOOM-C module of the YAZ Toolkit, which this
module is built on. Specifically, its lists of options are useful.
projects / ZOOM-Perl-moved-to-github.git / blobdiff