i think the source of the problem usually is that references are not
encoding the intention properly (certainly in the case of symlinks).
let's consider references in the context of e.g. a computer programs:
in prevalent programming languages/systems a call site is referencing
a function by a string (by the function's name), which is resolved in
one of the phases in the complex process of executing the program.
this is a good example of lost intention. consider computer programs
as what they really are, namely graphs, as opposed to flat text files:
at the call site did the programmer reference that specific version of
the function definition? if someone modifies the definition then
should the call site call the old definition or the new one? if
someone renames the definition then should the call site refer to the
same definition or become a broken link?
and a tangential to ponder about: for a compiler algorithm a program
means exactly the same even if we throw away all the names after name
resolution phase.
mainstream computing systems in general have no clear abstraction for
first class identity management, and due to that references are also
murky. e.g. if i look up a movie on imdb.com, and when i drop it on my
desktop, then i want my computing system to display the identity of
that movie, or in short: the movie. not a file, not a specific video
stream representing that movie, not a URL to imdb.com, not the name of
the movie... but its identity, the movie itself. and the same applies
when i drag and drop that icon again into a chat message.
so, in short: express your intention with high precision in the
references and in the data structures in general, and then the
solution will be trivial (which doesn't mean that properly identifying
your intentions is easy).
--
• attila lendvai
• PGP: 963F 5D5F 45C7 DFCD 0A39
--
“Merely having an open mind is nothing; the object of opening the
mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something
solid.”
— G.K. Chesterton
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