Re: Desired Lua Features

[KHMan <keinhong@...>]

On 1/29/2018 5:59 AM, Sean Conner wrote:
> It was thus said that the Great KHMan once stated:
> > [snip snip snip]
> [snip snip snip]
> I'm trying to think when else I did that, and while I'm sure I *have*,
> nothing comes to mind immediately.
>
>    That said, I was reminded of this article:
>
> 	http://prog21.dadgum.com/166.html [1]

In the blog post, the author was also searching for words to 
describe this switch/case thing, as I was when trying to put this 
phenomenon to words. He used 'intent', that we are handing over 
code generation to the compiler to optimize the thing, so that we 
can clearly focus on our intent in the switch code.

In a scripting language however, performance is less of a 
priority, because we have existing arguments that switch/case 
constructs can easily be coded by things like if-then-elseif 
strings, it's not needed, blah blah. We already have a lot of 
technical arguments, so what is the underlying non-technical issue 
that prompts the desire for switch/case?

IMHO, in the case of a scripting language, we have consciously or 
unconciously desired to structure information (code) in a certain 
way that humans often found useful and efficient (the time-table 
analogy). We wanted it presented in a certain way, so that the 
structured information can be most useful to the coder.

It's a bit like syntactic sugar. It's not like we decry syntactic 
sugar as bad or unnecessary because syntactic sugar can help 
present a thing more clearly, because it more closely matches 
things everybody knows, e.g. math norms.

Sorry if anyone on the list thinks that this seems like more like 
hand-waving psychology mumbo-jumbo. But past discussions have got 
nowhere with technical arguments. We often forget the wetware 
inside our skulls -- it's an important part of the coding process 
too. Should the brain comply obediently to language 
specifications, or should we help the brain to clearly express our 
intent. That is why we structure information, we lay out code in 
certain ways, etc. (Also, read Jakob Nielsen.)


>    -spc
>
> [1]	Check the archives for there is a lot of good material here.  Lots
> 	of food for thought.


--
Cheers,
Kein-Hong Man (esq.)
Selangor, Malaysia