Ambiguity in Processing Boolean Queries on TDMS Tree Structures: A Study of Four Different Philosophies.

This paper defines and demonstrates four philosophies for processing queries on tree structures; shows that the data semantics of queries should be described by designating sets of nodes from which values for attributes may be returned to the data consumer; shows that the data semantics of database processing can be specified totally independent of any machine, file structure, or implementation; shows that set theory is a natural and effective vehicle for analyzing the semantics of queries on tree structures; and finally, shows that Bolts is an adequate formalism for conveying the semantics of tree structure processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]