Re: Grammars for future languages

mbbad@s-crim1.daresbury.ac.uk (I. Badcoe)
Wed, 8 Nov 1995 09:45:43 GMT

          From comp.compilers

Related articles
[4 earlier articles]
Re: Grammars for future languages wdavis@dw3f.ess.harris.com (1995-10-26)
Re: Grammars for future languages timd@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM (1995-10-30)
Re: Grammars for future languages jaidi@technet.sg (1995-11-09)
Re: Grammars for future languages martelli@cadlab.it (1995-11-04)
Re: Grammars for future languages schinz@guano.alphanet.ch (1995-11-05)
Re: Grammars for future languages ECE@dwaf-hri.pwv.gov.za (John Carter) (1995-11-07)
Re: Grammars for future languages mbbad@s-crim1.daresbury.ac.uk (1995-11-08)
Re: Grammars for future languages szilagyi@szilagyi.mit.edu (1995-11-09)
Re: Grammars for future languages davids@ICSI.Berkeley.EDU (1995-11-10)
Re: Grammars for future languages macrakis@osf.org (1995-11-10)
Re: Grammars for future languages mfinney@inmind.com (1995-11-12)
Re: Grammars for future languages RWARD@math.otago.ac.nz (Roy Ward) (1995-11-13)
Re: Grammars for future languages macrakis@osf.org (1995-11-13)
[3 later articles]
| List of all articles for this month |

Newsgroups: comp.compilers
From: mbbad@s-crim1.daresbury.ac.uk (I. Badcoe)
Keywords: parse, design
Organization: SERC Daresbury Lab, Warrington, U.K.
References: 95-10-103
Date: Wed, 8 Nov 1995 09:45:43 GMT

Hi,
Just a brief comment.


I read the first-few replies to this with interest but noticed that
they all tended to make the same assumption, namely that any future language
had to be completely textual. Now, I'm am usually the last person to witter
on inanely about Graphical Interfaces but it seems to me that a very simple
way of making a language less likely to appear ambiguous would be with the
careful use of a few pencil-lines in the code (as in a flow-chart). For
example, just putting the contents of a loop *inside* a box is quite
sufficient to absolutely distinguish them from the surrounding code.


Of course this has disadvantages, the absolute requirement for an
interactive editor (another good way of making code-browsing easier) being the
main one, but as machines become more powerfull and less expensive, this sort
of objection will have less and less impact on peoples behaviour.


Just a brief musing,


Badders
--


Post a followup to this message

Return to the comp.compilers page.
Search the comp.compilers archives again.