Hello everybody,
  I'm trying to use the boost property tree library to represent recursive data structures, but although I can get the dumped json to look reasonable, I cannot traverse the ptree in any ways I've tried.
The code below, compiles and run, except for the call to Dump in DumpAssign.
Is there a way to traverse arbitrary trees where values can be themselves ptrees?

I'm about to throw the towel and go with boost::seriaization, but I did like the traversal mechanisms property trees offer.

Any suggestion?
Thanks,

  Maurizio

#include <boost/any.hpp>
#include <boost/assign/list_of.hpp>
#include <boost/foreach.hpp>
#include <boost/property_tree/json_parser.hpp>
#include <boost/property_tree/ptree.hpp>
#include <boost/property_tree/xml_parser.hpp>

#include <iostream>
#include <string>
#include <vector>
#include <map>

using boost::property_tree::ptree;
using boost::assign::list_of;
using boost::assign::map_list_of;
using namespace std;

ptree Op(string type, ptree a1, ptree a2) {
  ptree pt;
  
  //  pt.put_value(type);

  pt.put("type", type);

  ptree args;
  args.push_back(make_pair("", a1));
  args.push_back(make_pair("", a2));
  pt.add_child("args", args);

  return pt;
}

ptree Net(string name) {
  ptree pt;
  pt.put("type", "net");
  pt.put("name", name);
  return pt;
}

ptree Assign(ptree lhs, ptree rhs) {
  ptree pt;
  pt.put("type", "assign");

  pt.add_child("lhs", lhs);
  pt.add_child("rhs", rhs);
  return pt;
}

string Dump(ptree::value_type e);

string DumpConcat(ptree::value_type e) {
  string result = "{";
  bool first = true;
  BOOST_FOREACH(const ptree::value_type& child,
                e.second.get_child("args")) {
    if (not first) {
      result += ", ";
      first = false;
    }
    result += Dump(child);
  }
  return result + "}";
}

string DumpNet(ptree::value_type e) {
  return e.second.get<std::string>("name");
}

string DumpAssign(ptree::value_type e) {
  string result = "assign ";

  // HOW TO HAVE A RECURSIVE CALL TO Dump(lhs) HERE?
  result += Dump(?);

  return result;
}

string DumpNop(ptree::value_type) {return "NOP";}

string Dump(ptree::value_type e) {
  static std::map<string, string(*)(ptree::value_type)> dump = 
    map_list_of
      ("net", DumpNet)
      ("concat", DumpConcat)
      ("assign", DumpAssign)
      ("nop", DumpNop)
    ;
  string type = e.second.get<string>("type", "nop");
  return dump[type](e);
}

int main(int, char**) {

  ptree pt;

  ptree a1;

  a1.push_back(make_pair("", Assign(
                                    Op("concat", 
                                       Op("concat", Net("a1"), Net("a1")),
                                       Net("w")),
                                    Net("a2"))));

  pt.add_child("operators", a1);

  cout << "=============\n";
  write_json(std::cout, pt);
  cout << "=============\n";

  BOOST_FOREACH(const ptree::value_type& e, pt.get_child("operators")) {
    cout << "> " << Dump(e);
  }
}