From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.4 required=5.0 tests=AC_FROM_MANY_DOTS,BAYES_00 autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 10ad19,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid10ad19,public X-Google-Thread: 1073c2,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid1073c2,public X-Google-Thread: 101deb,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid101deb,public X-Google-Thread: 10a146,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid10a146,public X-Google-Thread: 107a89,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid107a89,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-Thread: 11440e,23963231b5359f74 X-Google-Attributes: gid11440e,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 2001-05-25 12:31:25 PST Path: archiver1.google.com!newsfeed.google.com!sn-xit-02!supernews.com!news.gv.tsc.tdk.com!falcon.america.net!sunqbc.risq.qc.ca!howland.erols.net!netnews.com!isdnet!psinet-france!psiuk-f4!psiuk-p4!uknet!psiuk-n!news.pace.co.uk!nh.pace.co.uk!not-for-mail From: "Marin David Condic" Newsgroups: comp.lang.ruby,comp.lang.ada,comp.lang.awk,comp.lang.clarion,comp.lang.java.programmer,comp.lang.pl1,comp.lang.vrml Subject: Re: Long names are doom ? Date: Fri, 25 May 2001 15:17:59 -0400 Organization: Posted on a server owned by Pace Micro Technology plc Message-ID: <9emb59$902$1@nh.pace.co.uk> References: <3B0DBD4A.82943473@my-deja.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: 136.170.200.133 X-Trace: nh.pace.co.uk 990818281 9218 136.170.200.133 (25 May 2001 19:18:01 GMT) X-Complaints-To: newsmaster@pace.co.uk NNTP-Posting-Date: 25 May 2001 19:18:01 GMT X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4522.1200 X-MIMEOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4522.1200 Xref: archiver1.google.com comp.lang.ruby:9919 comp.lang.ada:7775 comp.lang.awk:2599 comp.lang.clarion:20368 comp.lang.java.programmer:70826 comp.lang.pl1:639 comp.lang.vrml:3325 Date: 2001-05-25T19:18:01+00:00 List-Id: Data is A Good Thing. What these sort of style debates degenerate to is usually personal preference backed up with "evidence" arrived at through rectal extraction. Perhaps a controlled study could be performed? Take a single module of reasonable complexity (a hundred lines or so) and code it with long and short names. Insert a bug. Determine how long it takes a few dozen programmers to find and fix the bug. Similarly, code a system of higher complexity - say 10 packages of 5 subprograms each (find one already out there?) and code it both ways. (Auto-translate long names to short names). Insert a bug. See how long it takes the programmers to find and fix it. That sort of test would not be impossible to construct and could be done relatively easily in a controlled environment. If well constructed, it ought to settle the debate and suggest what we ought to be doing when coding things of different sizes. At least with respect to evolving systems. Throw away code (write only memory?) may be faster to develop with only single character identifiers and who cares about understanding it? MDC -- Marin David Condic Senior Software Engineer Pace Micro Technology Americas www.pacemicro.com Enabling the digital revolution e-Mail: marin.condic@pacemicro.com Web: http://www.mcondic.com/ wrote in message news:EJwP6.33931$%i7.27394225@news1.rdc1.sfba.home.com... > There may actually exist data on this normally faith-based question: > Section 3.3, "Naming Conventions", in "Ada Quality and Style - > Guidelines for Professional Programmers" says "... you can further > improve comprehension if your variable names are not excessively long." > and references p.7 of Schneiderman, B. 1986 "Empirical Studies of > Programmers: The Territory, Paths and Destinations" in "Empirical > Studies of Programmers" ed. E. Soloway and S. Iyengar.