Re: ASCL a doomed idea?

[Stephen Leake <stephen.a.leake.1@gsfc.nasa.gov>]

Jeffrey Carter <jrcarter@acm.org> writes:

> Oh, I get it now. Since C++ got it wrong, Ada should get it wrong to be
> compatible with C++. An excellent idea. Along the same lines, I suggest
> removing type checking from Ada, and replacing "begin" and "end" with
> {}. We'd better introduce the reserved words "class" and "friend" while
> we're at it.

I can be pedantic with the best of them, but there are times when it
pays to bow to practicality.

I doubt we will ever get agreement on the "right" definition of "list"
and related terms; even the people here who are quoting college texts
disagree. So I'll go with popularity on this one.

> "Position" is what it's usually called in the data structures literature
> in describing the abstraction called a list.

Can we get rid of these absolutist statements, and provide some
concrete references? I have no idea how to go about accessing "the"
data structures literature, so this statement is of no help to me. I
also find it hard to believe there is a monolithic set of such
literature, but I'm willing to be proven wrong. On the other hand, I
do have access to a good library, so a reference to a real book or
journal would be useful.

-- 
-- Stephe