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A task that I have to do specifies:

Start by defining the non-deterministic machine which performs shift-reduce stages with the help of magic or tau steps

However, I can't find any references to what a magic or tau step is in Compilers: Principles, Techniques & Tools (Aho et. al) or by searching on the internet.

Please could someone point me in the right direction?

Samuel Edwin Ward
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Froskoy
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1 Answers1

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I think they just mean that you should assume the actual shift-reduce step is a black box, and just define everything around it. Tau is a form of black magic according to Google.

user207421
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