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=-1.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 103376,808505c9db7d5613 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public From: dewar@merv.cs.nyu.edu (Robert Dewar) Subject: Re: Looking for good Ada95 book Date: 1996/11/17 Message-ID: #1/1 X-Deja-AN: 197021271 references: <32723F6A.54A3@dtek.chalmers.se> <563ikc$ipl@felix.seas.gwu.edu> <19961110155556618957@dialup102-5-9.swipnet.se> <56b275$6k4@felix.seas.gwu.edu> organization: New York University newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Date: 1996-11-17T00:00:00+00:00 List-Id: Mike says "It's a small point in the larger community; I maintain it is a helpful style for first-year students." OK, so, a claim that this is not just arbitrary, but that there is an objective advantage. OK, Mike, what is the source of evidence for this claim? I have never heard anyone else make this claim, or seen any evidence to back it up -- sure some Pascal books use this style, but as I explained there is understandable historic precedent, and you cannot assume that because a book uses this style that it agrees with the point Mike is making. P.S. Mike cannot say that he was completely unaware that anyone might object to this style, he has known for a long time that I object, but it is a fair point that no one else reviewing the book did. So far on CLA, no one has actively supported the MF style, the contributions to this thread are divided between those who agree with me that it is a pity that the book is inconsistent with the most commonly recommended style, and those who think it does not matter. It would be interesting to hear from anyone else who agrees that the style of upper case keywords is preferable for teaching. In my class, I see that most students use the standard style (I encourage but do not insist on it, I should have insisted). A few students who are used to upper case keyword style in Pascal persist in using it, and a few who are new to Ada and Pascal copy the style in the book. Some other students know Pascal well, but have learned from books with lower case keywords, so remain in that style (in general people tend to stick with whatever style they learn first in my experience, even if imported from another language).