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Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc.
From: |
Tom Lord |
Subject: |
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc. |
Date: |
Tue, 20 Jul 2004 12:17:30 -0700 (PDT) |
cduffy> And RFC822 isn't [a language]?
walters> It is a language. But it is a very well known one that
walters> is already in use in arch and works well.
No, it doesn't work well. It's a constant annoyance and has gotten
in the way repeatedly.
Here's an example. I will give you the following programming problem
to solve:
Using all new code (nothing copied from arch), write a library
routine that reads a log file, extracts a particular header,
and gives back a data structure that is a "natural"
representation of the data it contains.
Your program must not "know" about any specific arch headers.
You can't solve that problem because the only way to get a passing
grade is to write a program that reads the header:
New-patches: bling blang bloom
and returns an array of values:
answer[0] = "bling";
answer[1] = "blang";
answer[0] = "bloom";
Your program must also read this header:
Summary: i fixed something
and return a string:
answer = "i fixed something";
It must read this header:
Renamed-files: this that one other
and produce the answer:
answer[0][0] = "this";
answer[0][1] = "that";
answer[1][0] = "one";
answer[1][1] = "other";
If I relax the rules a bit and let your program "know" about specific
arch headers you can solve the problem. But then what happens if I
define a _new_ header: you'll still have to update your program.
>> I thought that Turing-complete was a quality that languages may or may
>> not possess, not a prerequirement for being a language at all.
> The point is that Tom's example did not demonstrate the need for a new
> Turing-complete language.
Nor am I proposing that the version variable language be turning
complete: only that it be a subset of a (good) turing complete
language.
-t
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., (continued)
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Charles Duffy, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Colin Walters, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Charles Duffy, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Colin Walters, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Talli Somekh, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., James Blackwell, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Pierce T . Wetter III, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Jeremy Shaw, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc.,
Tom Lord <=
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Jeremy Shaw, 2004/07/20
Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Colin Walters, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Colin Walters, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Phil Frost, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/20
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Jan Hudec, 2004/07/21
- Re: [Gnu-arch-users] new language, arch, furth, etc., Tom Lord, 2004/07/21