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Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada
Subject: Re: Don't use the "use" clause
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From: Stephen Leake <stephen_leake@acm.org>
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Date: Tue, 24 Jan 2006 18:00:53 -0500
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Date: 2006-01-24T18:00:53-05:00
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brian.b.mcguinness@lmco.com writes:

> I do not have a lot of experience with Ada.  I am working on a time and
> date package that
> uses routines from standard Ada packages.  At first I tried writing the
> code without any "use" clauses but I kept running into problems 

Next time, bring those "problems" here, or to your mentor; there are
better ways of solving them.

What compiler are you using? GNAT usually gives excellent error
messages in cases like this.

> so I finally gave up in frustration and "used" all of the standard
> packages I "with"ed.

Try adding the use clauses one at a time, in the smallest declaration
region you can (in the subprograms, not the package).

> I suspect that many other people have the same experience.

Yes, that's true.

Going overboard with "use" means you don't learn what each package has
in it. That's an important part of understanding a program.

> Frankly, I see no reason to avoid "use".  The whole point of providing
> overloading is so that you can have several functions or procedures
> with the same name.  

Yes. "use type" provides that for operators; most coding standards
that forbid "use" permit "use type". But I agree that overloading,
when used properly, increases the readability of the program.

> And I am perfectly happy to ignore any coding guideline that results
> in endless frustration without serving any useful purpose.

That is not acceptable, if you have agreed to join a project that uses
that particular coding standard. Instead, you must work to educate the
people on the project, and get the coding standard changed.

-- 
-- Stephe