the := operator (affectation

[Dennis Brown]

Dar,

I am not arguing for "=", I am arguing for "gets" and some shortcut  
that suits, if any.  "Gets" is a cousin of "get" command that is  
already a left assignment operator.  It does not introduce a new  
concept to the syntax, but just makes the "get" construct more  
general.  I actually find  it a bit awkward when I have used the "get  
x" construct, then decide later to use another variable instead of  
"it".  The editing is a lot more than just changing variable names.    
I have even taken to "put x into it" on occasion, just so I can more  
easily change my mind later.  I would be happy to be able to change  
"get x" to "myVariable gets  x".

Dennis

On Jun 23, 2005, at 1:40 PM, Dar Scott wrote:

>
> On Jun 23, 2005, at 11:17 AM, Dennis Brown wrote:
>
>
>> The "get x" construct is already a syntactic equivalent of "it=  
>> x" (left assignment).
>> That could be expanded to the general form "it gets x".
>> Now we have a general xTalk flavored version using the new "gets"  
>> keyword.
>> From there just substitute any shortcut for "gets" like "gts" or "=".
>>
>> There you have it.  Elegance, consistency, and brevity!
>>
>
> There is nothing elegant about "=" for assignment.  IMHO, ":=" is  
> much superior and is less offensive.  In mathematics "=" is a  
> relation or sometimes a function or sometimes used in "where" or  
> "let" syntax (named value scoping).
>
> Commands in xTalk follow the English implied-you imperatives.  The  
> deviation from that to a descriptive of the dataflow does not fit.   
> I come from a functional programming background, but I accept the  
> imperative style.
>
> Dar
> -- 
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>     DSC (Dar Scott Consulting & Dar's Lab)
>     http://www.swcp.com/dsc/
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