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From: stt@houdini.camb.inmet.com (Tucker Taft)
Subject: Re: Naming of Tagged Types and Associated Packages
Date: 1998/08/31
Date: 1998-08-31T00:00:00+00:00	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <EyJxBv.BKG.0.-s@inmet.camb.inmet.com> (raw)
In-Reply-To: m367f9rhdj.fsf@mheaney.ni.net

Matthew Heaney (matthew_heaney@acm.org) wrote:

: "John G. Volan" <johnvolan@sprintmail.com> writes:

: > Ada's mechanism is to force the identifiers to be literally different,
: > which means either adding some kind of noise word to one or the other,
: > or resorting to abbreviation for one or the other. 
: > ...

: I do this sort of thing too:

:    PDW : Pulse_Descriptor_Word;
:    
:    SOI : Signal_Of_Interest;

:    Speed : Speed_In_Knots;

A better choice for object names is often something that indicates
the specific role the object plays, rather than a name that simply echos
its type name.  Presumably there is more than one object of a given
type in existence.  The names ought to distinguish these objects by
hinting to the reader what they are used for.  For example,
an object of type  "Speed_In_Knots" is presumably the speed for
some particular other entity.  Presuming that that other entity has
a meaningful name, then its speed might be named "<entity>_Speed".
Prepositions like "From" or "To", qualifiers like "Source" and "Target"
or "Next" and "Prev", etc., often are better than just names that
parrot the type.

Remember that every name is a chance to communicate something of 
interest to the reader.  Make every name count (sounds like bidding
in the game of "Bridge" -- "make every bid count").

--
-Tucker Taft   stt@inmet.com   http://www.inmet.com/~stt/
Intermetrics, Inc.  Burlington, MA  USA
An AverStar Company




  reply	other threads:[~1998-08-31  0:00 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 138+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
1998-07-16  0:00 Naming of Tagged Types and Associated Packages taashlo
1998-07-25  0:00 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-25  0:00   ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-25  0:00     ` Brian Rogoff
1998-07-26  0:00       ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-26  0:00     ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-26  0:00       ` nabbasi
1998-07-26  0:00         ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-26  0:00         ` Robert Dewar
1998-07-27  0:00       ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-28  0:00         ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-28  0:00           ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-28  0:00             ` dennison
1998-07-29  0:00               ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-29  0:00                 ` dennison
1998-07-29  0:00                   ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-30  0:00                     ` dennison
1998-07-30  0:00                       ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-29  0:00         ` Robert I. Eachus
1998-07-30  0:00           ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-30  0:00             ` Robert I. Eachus
1998-07-31  0:00               ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-31  0:00                 ` Robert I. Eachus
1998-08-01  0:00                   ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-08-04  0:00                     ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-04  0:00                       ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-08-10  0:00                         ` Robert I. Eachus
1998-07-30  0:00           ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-27  0:00       ` dennison
1998-07-27  0:00         ` Stephen Leake
1998-07-27  0:00           ` dennison
1998-07-27  0:00             ` Brian Rogoff
1998-07-28  0:00               ` dennison
1998-07-28  0:00                 ` Brian Rogoff
1998-07-28  0:00                   ` Brian Rogoff
1998-07-29  0:00                     ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-29  0:00                       ` Brian Rogoff
1998-07-28  0:00                   ` dennison
1998-07-29  0:00                     ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-29  0:00                       ` Chris Brand
1998-07-30  0:00                         ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-30  0:00                           ` dennison
1998-07-30  0:00                             ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-30  0:00                               ` dennison
1998-08-01  0:00                           ` Simon Wright
1998-08-02  0:00                             ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-03  0:00                               ` dennison
1998-08-03  0:00                                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-04  0:00                                   ` dennison
1998-08-04  0:00                               ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-08-04  0:00                                 ` Brian Rogoff
1998-08-05  0:00                               ` Don Harrison
1998-08-05  0:00                                 ` Brian Rogoff
1998-08-07  0:00                                   ` doylep
1998-08-07  0:00                                     ` Brian Rogoff
1998-08-08  0:00                                       ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-10  0:00                                       ` doylep
1998-08-10  0:00                                         ` Brian Rogoff
1998-08-10  0:00                                           ` John Volan
1998-08-10  0:00                                           ` John Volan
1998-08-11  0:00                                           ` doylep
1998-08-11  0:00                                             ` Brian Rogoff
1998-08-13  0:00                                               ` Robert A Duff
1998-08-13  0:00                                                 ` Brian Rogoff
1998-09-01  0:00                                                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-01  0:00                                                   ` Dale Stanbrough
1998-09-01  0:00                                                     ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-01  0:00                                                       ` Bob Collins
1998-09-02  0:00                                                         ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-04  0:00                                                       ` John G. Volan
1998-08-11  0:00                                         ` Don Harrison
1998-08-11  0:00                                           ` Pat Rogers
1998-08-11  0:00                                             ` Don Harrison
1998-09-01  0:00                                               ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-13  0:00                                         ` Robert A Duff
1998-08-13  0:00                                           ` Brian Rogoff
1998-08-15  0:00                                             ` Don Harrison
1998-08-15  0:00                                               ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-08-18  0:00                                                 ` Don Harrison
1998-08-14  0:00                                           ` Don Harrison
1998-08-17  0:00                                             ` doylep
1998-08-19  0:00                                               ` Don Harrison
1998-08-12  0:00                                       ` Don Harrison
1998-08-08  0:00                                     ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-08  0:00                                       ` John G. Volan
1998-08-09  0:00                                         ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-10  0:00                                           ` John G. Volan
1998-08-11  0:00                                             ` Don Harrison
1998-08-11  0:00                                               ` geoff
1998-08-11  0:00                                             ` John Volan
1998-08-31  0:00                                             ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-31  0:00                                               ` Tucker Taft [this message]
1998-09-06  0:00                                                 ` John G. Volan
1998-09-06  0:00                                                   ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-04  0:00                                               ` John G. Volan
1998-09-06  0:00                                                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-06  0:00                                                   ` John G. Volan
1998-09-06  0:00                                                   ` John G. Volan
1998-09-06  0:00                                                     ` Brian Rogoff
1998-09-06  0:00                                                       ` John G. Volan
1998-09-07  0:00                                                         ` Brian Rogoff
1998-09-07  0:00                                                           ` John G. Volan
1998-09-16  0:00                                                             ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-04  0:00                                               ` John G. Volan
1998-09-05  0:00                                                 ` John G. Volan
1998-09-06  0:00                                                   ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-06  0:00                                                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-04  0:00                                               ` John G. Volan
1998-09-05  0:00                                                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-09-05  0:00                                                   ` John G. Volan
1998-09-05  0:00                                               ` John G. Volan
1998-09-05  0:00                                               ` John G. Volan
1998-08-11  0:00                                       ` doylep
1998-08-07  0:00                                   ` Don Harrison
1998-08-05  0:00                                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-07  0:00                                   ` Don Harrison
1998-08-13  0:00                                     ` Robert A Duff
1998-08-14  0:00                                       ` Don Harrison
1998-08-14  0:00                                       ` adam
1998-08-05  0:00                           ` Static Polymorphism (Was Re: Naming of Tagged Types...) Brian Rogoff
1998-08-06  0:00                             ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-06  0:00                               ` Brian Rogoff
1998-07-28  0:00             ` Naming of Tagged Types and Associated Packages Norman H. Cohen
1998-07-28  0:00               ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-28  0:00               ` Stephen Leake
1998-07-28  0:00         ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-28  0:00           ` Jean-Pierre Rosen
1998-07-28  0:00             ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-28  0:00               ` dennison
1998-07-29  0:00                 ` Matthew Heaney
1998-07-30  0:00                 ` Robert Dewar
1998-07-30  0:00                   ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-06  0:00         ` Robert A Duff
1998-08-06  0:00           ` Matthew Heaney
1998-08-06  0:00             ` Tucker Taft
1998-08-31  0:00               ` Matthew Heaney
  -- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
1998-07-26  0:00 tmoran
1998-07-27  0:00 ` dennison
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