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18:55:05
jackdaniel
if anyone is interested in ecl underpinnings then reading original kcl paper is highly recommended
19:14:49
shka_
i was wondering if you notices some parallels regarding clear style as described in the art of the style and programming
3:54:52
beach
shka_: Yes, there are many parallels between good style in technical and scientific writing, and good style in programming. Now, if only more people would realize that!
4:54:59
beach
No sane person would (say) write a text in the German language, and decide not to capitalize nouns ("because *I* prefer them in lower case"), nor would anyone start putting spaces before `:' and `;' in English ("because *I* am used to French, and *I* think it looks better that way"), nor would anyone put the adjectives after the nouns in English ("because *I* think it is easier to read").
4:55:30
beach
But pretty much every week, we see a person in #lisp arguing something analogous in programming.
4:57:45
Bike
i spose the difference is with natural language you're talking to a person, whereas in programming you're talking in large part to a computer that doesn't care
4:58:23
beach
Well, that's sort of what I am arguing. You are (or you should) mostly talking to the person maintaining your code.
5:00:10
beach
I just had an idea. When I argue with one of these people, I should use French spacing, and I should put adjectives after nouns. :)
5:01:36
beach
Anyway, time for a break. I have a long day in front of me. ELS paper bidding, some admin work, SICL code generation.