valueDiff for arrays?

[Mark Waddingham]

On 2018-08-04 18:33, Richard Gaskin via use-livecode wrote:
> Adding more such commands to operate on values instead of just keys
> would be handy, but not at all necessary.  There are more pressing
> concerns that only the engine team can implement, and scripting in
> LiveCode is something every LiveCode scripter can do.

Yes - so come up with LCS handlers which do that, share them, let's work 
together to make them as efficient in LCS as possible and then see what 
we can do in the engine to improve their performance (which I'm guessing 
is as much the purpose for the proposition as the syntax).

If they show up more fundamental operations which they can be built out 
of which can be made exceptionally efficient in C++ (because it has 
greater fidelity at the bit/pointer/memory level), then we add those and 
then the higher-level operations that use them remain in LCS.

The only difference between value manipulation operations in the engine 
and in LCS is (at the end of day) the syntax, and the overhead of 
maintenance. Maintenance of every single line of C++ code is at least an 
order of magnitude mode expensive (in both time, man power and money) 
than an equivalent line in LCS (otherwise we'd all be coding in C++, 
wouldn't we?).

So - first - if you have an implementation of valueDiff - share it. It 
means everyone can see directly in code, what your English description 
actually means in effect. Then it means everyone can look to see how 
efficient it can be made in LCS - and, also to see if it can be broken 
down into more vastly more re-usable fundamental operations which allows 
us all to build even more utility functions.

Warmest Regards,

Mark.

-- 
Mark Waddingham ~ mark at livecode.com ~ http://www.livecode.com/
LiveCode: Everyone can create apps