Make numberFormat even better

Curry Kenworthy curry at pair.com
Tue Apr 25 15:50:38 EDT 2017


Roger:

 > I wouldn't even be here if not for my introduction to
 > English-like syntax via HyperCard 25+ years ago.  My
 > apparently "not very useful work" over the past 25 years
 > ... has kept me employed, my family clothed and fed,
 > a roof over our heads, and all my bills paid.

Well said! I'd go even further. There's no need for xTalk users to be on 
the defensive at all. This looks like a false dilemma on two fronts.

Some people are trend-attuned, bandwagonish and when something like 
JavaScript becomes extremely popular, they feel the need to compromise 
or follow it beyond the extent which is already dictated by technology. 
It's possible that nothing will make those people feel comfortable until 
LC scripting is essentially JS. And later if another language were to 
overtake JS, they'd want to follow that. That's largely subjective, so I 
can't really add anything on that side of the equation. Objectively, 
good syntax is not a limitation.

The other front, whether/how to improve numberFormat, does have a real 
dilemma of limited size, but there's no need for massive changes to the 
language. Treating integers and reals differently would introduce a 
variety of problems, I think, starting with the fact that I may have 
what may look like an integer but I consider a real.

I think that approach would violate KISS, and certainly backward 
compatibility. There may still be little quirks to think about, but 
there are straightforward ways to make improvements to specific 
numberFormat limitations without breaking anything. Failing that, I'm 
happy to keep enjoying the limited role that it does well, and rolling 
some of my own solutions. :)

Best wishes,

Curry Kenworthy

Custom Software Development
http://curryk.com/consulting/




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