Reducing Carpel Tunnel Syndrome

Reducing Carpel Tunnel Syndrome

[Dr. Robert Leif]

To: Bob Duff et al.
From: Bob Leif

I was trying to emphasize that the information for named notation is
present in the program. Since I am a very firm believer in named notation,
I employ it as the default.  In Ada 83, I keep all of my numeric types in a
package Num_Types. I tend to with and use this package because it makes
math functions more readable.

Since Ada 95 permits the use of a type, one can have the pretty printer
ignore these. Or to argue by analogy, which is not always correct, a smart
pretty printer is equivalent to a grammar checker.  The pretty printer
would be configured according to the organization's style guide and could
take a pragma No_Named_Notation. For changing to named notation, I can not
resist Pragma No_Use.

The system does not have to be perfect. All it needs to do is be accurate
enough to significantly reduce human typing.  In the case of code obtained
from archives, the new user would have both the old and new version to
merge.  Providing the system was about 90% correct in selecting which
positional arguments to change to named notation, one would come out ahead.
In fact, the tool might just be used to facilitate understanding of some
difficult sections of code.

In short, tools to be useful need NOT be perfect.

I will be on travel for the next two weeks.
You wrote
________________________________________________
It took me a few minutes to "get it".  :-)

I don't see how a tool can decide whether to make a call named or
positional.  For some procedures named is more readable, and for some,
positional is more readable.  And for some, a mixture is more readable.
To automate this, you would need to mark each procedure declaration
somehow.

- Bob
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Bob Leif
Robert C. Leif, Ph.D., PMIAC,
Vice President & Research Director
Ada_Med, A Division of Newport Instruments
Tel. & Fax (619) 582-0437
Please send e-mail to my new address, rleif@rleif.com
Thank you.