Given is the following python script: text = '<?xml version="1.24" encoding="utf-8">' mu = (".??[?]?[?]", "....") for item in mu: print item,":",re.search(item, text).group() Can someone please explain why the first hit with the regex .??[?]?[?] returns <? instead of just ?. My explaination: .?? should match nothing as .? can match or not any char and the second ? makes it not greedy. [?]? can match ? or not, so nothing is good, too [?] just matches ? That should result in ? and not in <? Continue reading...
