> From: Discuss [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf > Of Sarah Mount> > Sent: Friday, December 18, 2015 8:22 AM > To: Alexander Konovalov <[email protected]> > Cc: Software Carpentry Discussion <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Discuss] Metaphor to explain version numbers > > If I buy a copy of Mathematical Methods for Science Students which > edition should I buy? What happens if an unscrupulous publisher > reprints edition 1 and calls it edition 3? How does the publisher > decide when to release a new edition? When the author has more text > or when all the typos have gone, or some other time? >
Hi, all. I'm a long time listener, first time caller. I like the book analogy. That model resonated with me when I first started developing my workflow for my electronic documents. I was able to make the connection between a book's edition and "print run" identification as similar to the idea of "semantic versioning" in software. This helped me to translate a lot of the software engineering concepts into my data analysis workflow, which is how I discovered Software Carpentry in the first place. Many people may not be that familiar with the publishing process. While they may understand the concept of an "edition" of a book, they may not be familiar with the idea of a "print run." There may be some potential for confusion if you need to introduce the concept of "print run" before introducing the book publishing model. It might be worth considering that many areas have similar concepts of versions even if they use different terminology. In the movie industry, for example, it is common to talk about different releases or remakes. Manufacturers typically use model numbers or model years and even more finely detailed serial numbers and VINs. In the end, the goal is to be able to distinguish a specific instance from any other instances that may exist and yet to retain some concept of the instances relationship to other instances. If someone reports an error in your output, does that error affect other instances? This can prevent or alleviate misunderstanding especially when trying to debug issues and make workflow adjustments. So you don't find yourself trying to reproduce someone's analysis from the wrong data set, buying a replacement part that doesn't fit your particular "version" of the washing machine, or arguing over whether or not "Han shot first." —Dan. ======================================== Daniel P. Nugent / Managing Director, Computational and Spatial Analysis Core [email protected] Population Research Institute / The Pennsylvania State University Office: 814-863-8321 / FAX: 814-863-8342 813 Oswald Tower, University Park PA 16802 http://www.pop.psu.edu My Availability: http://www.personal.psu.edu/dpn3/availability My Public Key: http://www.personal.psu.edu/dpn3/publickey Key Fingerprint: 5FA2 3C6A FD99 683F 99A3 5002 0151 B0C9 C9CE 7307 _______________________________________________ Discuss mailing list [email protected] http://lists.software-carpentry.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss_lists.software-carpentry.org
