> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.internetobject.org/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.internetobject.org/parsing-and-errors/parsing-and-errors.md).

# Overview

Turning Internet Object text into validated data happens in stages:

1. **Tokenize** — split the text into tokens (values, separators, structural characters).
2. **Parse** — assemble tokens into a document tree (header, sections, records, values).
3. **Validate** — check the data against the schema.
4. **Load** — produce the final in-memory values.

Errors fall into **two classes**, matching the stages that produce them:

| Class                | Stage            | Example                                            |
| -------------------- | ---------------- | -------------------------------------------------- |
| **Syntax error**     | tokenize / parse | unbalanced `{`, missing comma, unterminated string |
| **Validation error** | validate         | wrong type, out of range, missing required field   |

The distinction matters because the two classes recover differently:

* **Syntax errors** are bounded by **structure** — the parser skips to the next boundary (`~` or `---`) and continues.
* **Validation errors** are bounded by the **object** — each record is validated on its own and may report zero, one, or many errors, without affecting other records.

## In this section

* [Error Model](/parsing-and-errors/error-model.md) — the two classes, categories, and error conditions
* [Parser Behavior & Recovery](/parsing-and-errors/parser-behavior.md) — how recovery works; processing options
* [Error Accumulation](/parsing-and-errors/error-accumulation.md) — collecting many errors and partial output

## See Also

* [Syntax Errors](/structure-and-syntax/syntax-errors.md)
* [Collection Rules](/collections/collection-rules.md)


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.internetobject.org/parsing-and-errors/parsing-and-errors.md?ask=<question>&goal=<endgoal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.