At 02:44 PM 11/09/2001 +0100, Frank Nordberg wrote: > > >[EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: >> >> At 11:51 AM 11/06/2001 +0100, Frank Nordberg wrote: >> >> >I'd say we leave the %% commands as the programmers' own personal >> >playground. Let's mention the possibility in the standard, recommend the >> >use of a program specific handler at the start of the line and leave the >> >rest to the programmers. If they create %% extentions that conflict with >> >each other - well, that's their problem, not ours. >> >> My concern is that this reduces the usefulness of ABC as an interchange >> standard. If programmers create %% extensions that conflict with each other, >> users will inevitably use them and somebody downloading a piece of ABC from >> the tune finder with the intention of running it through some ABC program >> will either have to edit the file or make sure they run it through the right >> program. > >True, but the only way assure absolute compatibility is to introduce an >absolute no-program-specific-extentions-allowed policy. Not only would >such a policy be impossible to enforce, it would also mean throwing out >the baby with the bathwater. > >Programmers will introduce their own personal extentions to the standard >whether we like it or not, so we might as well have somewhere reasonably >safe for them to do so.
I think we actually agree here but the thread has gotten twisted enough that it may not look like it. Let me try and summarize my position on extensions. 1. Getting good, useful things into the standard is very important. I am definitely not after gratuitous extensions. 2. As you say, programmers will introduce extensions. My suggestion of a namespaced %% syntax gives them somewhere completely safe to do this. Using the name of the program as a namespace guarantees that there will not be clashes (assuming that names of programs stay unique) 3. We should end up with enough in the standard that program X should be able to read in a file containing extensions for program Y and still do a half decent job with it. Bob ---------------------------------------------------------- -- Bob Archer [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html
