Regarding conflicting ranges—

In a[i:j:k], 0 <= i, i <= j, j <= k, and k <= cap(a). If not, then the operation will panic.

Your questions are really unclear.

In the 2-parameters form `a[low:high]`, both values can be left out, defaulting to respectively 0 and len(a). In the 3-parameter form, only the leading value can be left out, defaulting to 0.

I've no idea what (4) is asking about.