How to parse groovy file with multiline docstrings?

[xhujerr]

I'm trying create tags for a groovy file(s).

I followed SO question How can I get groovy methods with generics to work with ctags (universal ctags)?

and created options file:

-RV

--languages=+Java

--language-force=Java
--langmap=java:.groovy
--excmd=pattern

--exclude=.git
--exclude=*.js
--exclude=*.bak
--exclude=*.orig

When I try to run it I unfortunately get an error:

OPENING aws/cfn_custom.groovy as Java language file [new]
aws/cfn_custom.groovy: failed to find match for '(' at line 60

The failure is within a multiline docstring:

Doc = '''
...
some text [link](https://example.com) some text
...
'''

I'm a very beginner with ctags, so I'm probably doing it all wrong.
But is there a way to instruct ctags to ignore multiline docstrings?

The command line you used to run ctags:

ctags --options=NONE -RV --languages=+Java --language-force=Java --langmap=java:.groovy --excmd=pattern --exclude=Makefile --exclude=*.js --exclude=*.bak --exclude=*.orig --exclude=. -f ./groovy.ctags.test work.groovy 

The content of input file:

Doc = '''
...
some text [link](https://example.com) some text
...
'''

The tags output you are not satisfied with:

ctags: Notice: No options will be read from files or environment
  Option: --languages=+Java
    Enabled languages: + Java
  Option: --language-force=Java
  Option: --langmap=java:.groovy
    Setting Java language map:
  Option: --excmd=pattern
  Option: --exclude=Makefile
    adding exclude pattern: Makefile
  Option: --exclude=*.js
    adding exclude pattern: *.js
  Option: --exclude=*.bak
    adding exclude pattern: *.bak
  Option: --exclude=*.orig
    adding exclude pattern: *.orig
  Option: --exclude=.
    adding exclude pattern: .
  Option: -f ./groovy.ctags.test
Reading command line arguments
OPENING work.groovy as Java language file [new]
Initialize parser: Java
Initialize parser: CPreProcessor
work.groovy: failed to find match for '(' at line 3
sorting tag file
system ("sort -u -o './groovy.ctags.test' './groovy.ctags.test'")

The tags output you expect:

the ctags won't fail on the input file, but gracefully ignore the text in between ''' and ''' (including new lines).

The version of ctags:

$ ctags --version
Universal Ctags 5.9.0(p5.9.20210307.0), Copyright (C) 2015 Universal Ctags Team
Universal Ctags is derived from Exuberant Ctags.
Exuberant Ctags 5.8, Copyright (C) 1996-2009 Darren Hiebert
  Compiled: Mar 10 2021, 13:59:47
  URL: https://ctags.io/
  Optional compiled features: +wildcards, +regex, +iconv, +option-directory, +packcc

How do you get ctags binary:

Building it locally, via GNU/Linux Ubuntu distribution

DISTRIB_ID=Ubuntu
DISTRIB_RELEASE=20.04
DISTRIB_CODENAME=focal
DISTRIB_DESCRIPTION="Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS"

following SO question https://stackoverflow.com/a/34401367/775066

also tried binary from ubuntu package:
universal-ctags | 0+git20181215-2 | http://de.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal/universe amd64 Packages

[masatake]

But is there a way to instruct ctags to ignore multiline docstrings?

No, as far as using the Java parser for parsing Groovy input files.

aws/cfn_custom.groovy: failed to find match for '(' at line 60

Java parser just reports the input is broken as Java source code.

[xhujerr]

AFAIK there's no parser for groovy files, correct?

So how do I parse a groovy file?

[masatake]

AFAIK there's no parser for groovy files, correct?

Yes.

So how do I parse a groovy file?

A. write a parser for Groovy and link it to ctags, or
B. wait for someone writing Groovy parser.

These choices are applicable to any languages which ctags doesn't support.

See also #1566 .

[xhujerr]

See also #1566 .

Yeah, I saw that Groovy isn't the most wanted :-)

In the end I found my .ctags syntax file for Groovy language (exuberant-ctags) and that is working for me.

Btw. I use ctags in Kate CTags Plugin
How to configure ctags in Kate?
I think I didn't see Kate in Software using ctags

Thanks for you help and a patience with a newbie
And thanks for developing ctags