Backend>Chat

Using Regular Expressions in Erlang

rustkas

rustkas

Using Regular Expressions in Erlang

Intensively researching Erlang books and additional resources on it, I have found that the topic of using Regular Expressions is either casually mentioned or not touched upon. Regular expressions are a powerful helper in any programming language. I am wondering how it is implemented in Erlang.

When I started to implement my CSV converter solution, which you can read about in the “Property-Based Testing with PropEr, Erlang, and Elixir” book’s Journal for input text encoding, I decided to try using the functionality of the Erlang re library, but I realized that its capabilities are very powerful and I need to understand it in more detail (its skillful use will provide a convenient tool for implementing various ideas).

I start reading “Introducing Regular Expressions”. The book’s source code examples and Erlang re library documentation gave me enough information to start my research (rebar3 based Erlang project implementation) into this area.

If anyone has anything to share on this topic, please do share! :bulb: :blush:

43 comments
/erlang#regular-expressions
91 5662 43

Most Liked

Rainer

Rainer

Regex is such a nice tool, but unfortunately I’m using it rarely, so every time I use it it feels a bit awkward at the beginning.
I also use the already mentioned RegExr to write the expression first.

It’s always good to know about regex when solving some coding puzzles like Advent of Code. I used it there with Erlang :slight_smile:

3
Post #9
OvermindDL1

OvermindDL1

Joooin uuuusss…

Lol, not kidding though, I use regex at least once a day, and occasionally 150 times in a day. ^.^;

Not even with just programming stuff, but in just text editing most often.

3
Post #10
NobbZ

NobbZ

They are indeed the same string, and therefore will result in the same regex.

As there is no first level syntax support for regexes in Erlang you have two escape the backslash in the string such that the regex engine actually sees it.

3
Post #32

Where Next?

View thread on forum
erlang
regular-expressions
Home Backend>Chat
/erlang#regular-expressions
91 5662 43
Last post

Popular Backend topics Top

AstonJ
Backend>Chat

Which web frameworks are popular in 2020?
Partly interested in this so we can set up tags, but also because I’m out of touch with which frameworks are hot right now and I’m curiou...
#web-frameworks
15 989 2
New
AstonJ
Backend>Chat

Which server-side languages are you most excited about?
Which server-side languages are you most interested in right now? Anything new or relatively new that’s caught your eye? Maybe an older l...
#server-sideuages
30 1267 9
New
AstonJ
Backend>Chat

What do you like about Rust?
I’ve seen more and more people get into Rust recently, so thought it would be cool to have a thread for people to share what they like ab...
/rust#opinions
26 1377 7
New
First poster: bot
Backend>Chat

C++ the Good Parts
C++: The Good Parts . Jordan DeLong overviews the past, current and near future “good parts” of C++'s functional side through the colore...
infoq.com
/c-plus-plus/go
0 1357 0
New
DevotionGeo
Backend>Chat

Manual Memory Management in Go using jemalloc
How Dgraph was running out of memory for some users, and how Go’s Garbage collector wasn’t enough, and Dgraph team used jemalloc to manag...
/go#garbage-collectiion
2 1886 1
New
Jsdr3398
Backend>Chat

What are some great learning resources for Elixir?
I’ve recently become interested in Elixir and all it’s neat perks. And since I’m currently working on a messaging platform; elixir seems ...
/elixir
8 2379 6
New
First poster: bot
Backend>Chat

Go proposal: types that can only be created by defining package
proposal: Go 2: permit types to say they may only be created by containing package · Issue #43123 · golang/go. It would be useful to per...
github.com
/go#types
0 1332 0
New
First poster: bot
Backend>Chat

RETRO: a Modern, Pragmatic Forth
Welcome to RETRO, my personal take on the Forth language. This is a modern system primarily targetting desktop, mobile, and servers, th...
forth.works
#retro
0 1072 0
New
AstonJ
Backend>Chat

DHH's video preview of Rails 7
And the blog: Rails has been unapologetically full stack since the beginning. We’ve continuously sought to include ever-more default an...
/rails/tailwind#video#esbuild
8 1763 1
New
lucasvegi
Backend>Chat

Survey on Refactorings for Elixir
Hello guys! Perhaps some of you have already seen this invitation on other channels in the Elixir community or even responded to our sur...
/elixir
2 602 1
New

Other popular topics Top

dasdom
General Dev>Dev Chat

Standing Desks
No chair. I have a standing desk. This post was split into a dedicated thread from our thread about chairs :slight_smile:
#workspace#opinions
177 9886 77
New
DevotionGeo
Backend>Questions

Can someone explain the -t option/flag in docker run command?
I know that -t flag is used along with -i flag for getting an interactive shell. But I cannot digest what the man page for docker run com...
#docker
7 10261 2
New
PragmaticBookshelf
Game Dev>Learning Resources

Hands-on Rust: Effective Learning through 2D Game Development and Play
Rust is an exciting new programming language combining the power of C with memory safety, fearless concurrency, and productivity boosters...
pragprog.com
#pragprog/rust#published-book/book-hands-on-rust
117 10879 30
New
Margaret
General Dev>Dev Chat

PragProg’s Medium Posts
Hello everyone! This thread is to tell you about what authors from The Pragmatic Bookshelf are writing on Medium.
#pragprog#blog-post
1147 29994 760
New
mafinar
Backend>Chat

Data Structures and Algorithms with Elixir
This is going to be a long an frequently posted thread. While talking to a friend of mine who has taken data structure and algorithm cou...
/elixir#algorithms#data-structures
108 11869 31
New
AstonJ
General Dev>Code Editors

Doom-Emacs: Can't find emacs in your PATH
If you get Can't find emacs in your PATH when trying to install Doom Emacs on your Mac you… just… need to install Emacs first! :lol: bre...
#macos/emacs#doom-emacs
4 5837 0
New
First poster: bot
General Dev>In The News

Zig now has built-in HTTP server and client in std
zig/http.zig at 7cf2cbb33ef34c1d211135f56d30fe23b6cacd42 · ziglang/zig. General-purpose programming language and toolchain for maintaini...
github.com
/zig#http
0 5624 0
New
PragmaticBookshelf
General Dev>Learning Resources

A Common-Sense Guide to Data Structures and Algorithms in Python, Volume 1
Big O Notation can make your code faster by orders of magnitude. Get the hands-on info you need to master data structures and algorithms ...
pragprog.com
#pragprog/python#published-book/book-a-common-sense-guide-to-data-structures-and-algorithms-in-python-volume-1
24 5988 11
New
AstonJ
AI>Chat

How to: Run DeepSeek on Mac, Windows, and Linux!
This is a very quick guide, you just need to: Download LM Studio: https://lmstudio.ai/ Click on search Type DeepSeek, then select the o...
#macs/deepseek#guides#lm-studio
14 9328 10
New
NewsBot
Backend>Official News

Node.js v22.14.0 released!
Node.js v22.14.0 has been released. Link: Release 2025-02-11, Version 22.14.0 'Jod' (LTS), @aduh95 · nodejs/node · GitHub
github.com
/nodejs#official-news
0 4251 0
New
Back to top

Sponsor Spotlight

Pragmatic Studio

Courses that move you from confusion to "Aha, now I get it!"

Latest in Erlang

Erlang Portal ❯

Backend>Chat

Backend Chat ❯

Latest on Devtalk

Devtalk ❯

We ❤️ helpful members!

We reward our most helpful members via our MOTM scheme - by giving away a whopping 25 books per year!

Member of the Month

Devtalk Sponsors

Pragmatic Bookshelf

Practical resources that improve the lives of professional developers.

Erlang Solutions

We build trusted fault-tolerant systems that scale to billions of users.

Honeybadger

Real-time error tracking, performance insights, and observability for devs.

EEF

Supporting innovation across the BEAM ecosystem.

coders51

We build reliable cloud platforms for business-critical systems.

Manning Publications

Develop your skills with books, videos, and courses.

AppSignal

Catch errors, track performance, monitor hosts and more.

WyeWorks

Enabling companies to succeed by building software people love.

Pragmatic Studio

Courses that move you from confusion to "Aha, now I get it!"

Linux New Media

Publishing Linux Magazine, ADMIN, and MakerSpace for 25+ years.

View all our sponsors ❯

Categories:

Sub Categories:

Popular Portals

Devtalk Sponsors

Pragmatic Bookshelf

Practical resources that improve the lives of professional developers.

Erlang Solutions

We build trusted fault-tolerant systems that scale to billions of users.

Honeybadger

Real-time error tracking, performance insights, and observability for devs.

EEF

Supporting innovation across the BEAM ecosystem.

coders51

We build reliable cloud platforms for business-critical systems.

Manning Publications

Develop your skills with books, videos, and courses.

AppSignal

Catch errors, track performance, monitor hosts and more.

WyeWorks

Enabling companies to succeed by building software people love.

Pragmatic Studio

Courses that move you from confusion to "Aha, now I get it!"

Linux New Media

Publishing Linux Magazine, ADMIN, and MakerSpace for 25+ years.

View all our sponsors ❯

We're in Beta

About us Mission Statement See our Roadmap