* @return the extracted value, or null if no match
     */
    protected String getValue(final Pattern pattern, final String line) {
        final Matcher m = pattern.matcher(line);
        if (m.matches() && m.groupCount() > 0) {
            return m.group(1);
        }
        return null;
    }

    /**
     * Strips comments from a line (everything after '#' character).