RE: Why not combine Ada and C++?

["Beard, Frank" <beardf@spawar.navy.mil>]

-----Original Message-----
From: Hyman Rosen [mailto:hyrosen@mail.com]

> And as far as causing confusion, Ada already allows the same name to 
> mean multiple things. Quoting from Barnes,
> 
>	type Colour is (Red, Amber, Green);
>	type Stone is (Amber, Beryl, Quartz);
>
> So when you see Amber in the code, you don't instantly know what it 
> refers to - you have to examine the context. Reading it aloud doesn't 
> help either. I fail to see why this is any different than allowing 
> identifiers to differ only in case.

Yes, but the right variable names make the context obvious, as in:

	Traffic_Light_Color := Amber;
or
	Stone_Formation := Amber;

Then the context is immediately clear, but the following isn't:

	X := Amber;
and
	x := Amber;

To me, relying on case sensitivity clouds the context.  Sure, you can
get used to it, but it's more things to keep up with, and requires
more documentation.

However, as a minor exception to that, we do use all uppercase to
indicate constants, as in MAXIMUM_DEVICES.

Frank