Re: How to alphabetasize sections?

[Emanuel Berg]

Thien-Thi Nguyen <ttn@gnu.org> writes:

> I don't think there is a "best way" per se in Emacs
> (although certainly there are many suboptimal ways,
> including not using Emacs at all!), so it depends on
> what other attributes one desires from the exercise.
> I.e., YMMV.

Yes.

> and away from those that involve a lot of (high(er)
> entropy)

Yeah? - the entropy is the directories and the files
and the references in the main file?

But that stuff contains information as well - OK, the
same information as would a huge file - but the same
information in a way that is much better suited to, in
turn, be communicated to a human.

At least those humans who are dealing with file trees
all day long: they see a file tree with file names and
they don't see slashes and letters and dots. They see
purpose and structure. (They see blondes and
brunettes...)

But: do you see those wenches by looking at a very,
very long LaTeX source file, with sections so long they
don't fit on a screen by far, making you not even
immediately notice there are sections? I think not!

> data motion

Do you mean when the subdivision is done, or in
compilation? That must be considered very slim data
motion in both cases. Compilation is already not
exactly manual and the subdivision can be automatized
if deemed necessary (i.e., large amount of sections).
Automatic movement that virtually never fails (at least
in the compilation case, just including some files) -
is such movement still of bad? (Why is data motion bad
at all by the way?)

> and manularity.

Yes: I don't mind doing it manually! Step one is to
realize there need to be order. Step two is to create
that order. This will often increase understanding
tenfold.

For example, a project in C++. Let's say it was somehow
implemented so you could have all the C++ source files,
the header files, the Makefile, and the object files in
one file - and it would even contain the executable
binary... Would you want that? No. So where does C++
cross the line where it makes sense to have different
files? And where would that line go for LateX?

--
underground experts united