Here are some ways to improve readability for me:
lets take,
quicksort=: (($:@(<#[),(=#[),$:@(>#[))({~ ?@#))^:(1<#)
the first step is spacing out the train:
quicksort=: (($:@(<#[) , (=#[) , $:@(>#[)) ({~ ?@#)) ^: (1<#)
the next step is avoiding the hook that takes a while to find due to all the
parens:
quicksort=: (] ($:@(<#[) , (=#[) , $:@(>#[)) ({~ ?@#)) ^: (1<#)
I find the above superhelpful because the left ] tells me right away that it is
a fork.
and then automatically all of the references to [ in the pivot verb are
actually ones to y argument, and I know that the whole verb is monadic.
optional, but I think still helpful, is to add whitespace to long parens, and
it doesn't hurt to get rid of right hook:
quicksort=: (] ( $:@(<#[) , (=#[) , $:@(>#[) ) (] {~ ?@#)) ^: (1<#)
----- Original Message -----
From: Don Kelly <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Cc:
Sent: Monday, May 19, 2014 9:55:33 PM
Subject: Re: [Jprogramming] Understandable J
Agreed but both need attention- often the most refined program may be
the hardest to read.
Don
On 17/05/2014 9:31 PM, 'Bo Jacoby' via Programming wrote:
> Improve the program rather than the documentation.
>
> Den 4:49 søndag den 18. maj 2014 skrev Don Kelly <[email protected]>:
>
>
>>
>> I find that putting code with lots of explanatory NB.'s and maybe a
>> how-to paragraph as a noun in a script is essential. This also works
>> for little code snippets than may prove useful in the future (and
>> sometimes with variations listed). Examples also help.
>> This is not only an aid to me, but to others who may use the code. This
>> came from past APL experience where I would look at something I wrote
>> and wondered what I did. Starting from scratch is nice but if the hard
>> work has been done, why do it again
>> except to improve on the approach?
>> There are 2 ways:
>> 1)intersperse comments within multiline verbs to help interpretation of
>> the line
>> 2)provide a noun such as "howN'
>> and example of this is the following definition from an Essay on Newton
>> Raphson
>> where the following is given
>>
>> N=: 1 : '- u % u d. 1' (which could be given a better name)
>>
>> this could be followed by a series of NB.'s in the script indicating the
>> usage
>> NB. (_2+*:)N ^:c]xo solves x^2 =2 using c iterations starting form a guess xo
>> or with more Nb. for more detail.
>>
>> Don Kelly
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On 15/05/2014 11:36 PM, robert therriault wrote:
>>> Thanks Raul,
>>>
>>> I am happy with some of the progress that I am making in my projects (and
>>> occasionally programming as well), but I like the poetry of J and in that
>>> way part of the challenge is placing the context through the examples.
>>> Without that context a poem is just pretty words on a page and a tacit
>>> expression without examples may not even reveal its valence.
>>>
>>> I think that there are opportunities in combining good test driven
>>> development with the rapid prototyping abilities of J -- but first I am
>>> playing with J Labs as a medium of expression, education, art etc.
>>>
>>> Cheers, bob
>>>
>>> ps. I appreciate the support for my work. The fact that I am a terrible
>>> programmer does not keep me from making terrible programs that explore neat
>>> ideas. Life's too short to let a lack of talent hold you back :-)
>>>
>>> On May 15, 2014, at 11:10 PM, Raul Miller <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I would not knock "starting from scratch" as a bad thing. Arthur Whitney
>>>> has been known to do that, for example.
>>>>
>>>> I think it matters more what you are accomplishing and your ability to make
>>>> that useful for other people.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks,
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Raul
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Fri, May 16, 2014 at 2:07 AM, robert therriault
>>>> <[email protected]>wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> I am a terrible programmer, but I have found that including comments that
>>>>> have examples of what the entity should do, are usually enough for me to
>>>>> figure out what is going on.
>>>>>
>>>>> Without that ... I usually start from scratch, as that is faster and less
>>>>> frustrating.
>>>>>
>>>>> I really am terrible at programming.
>>>>>
>>>>> Cheers, bob
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On May 15, 2014, at 10:52 PM, 'Bo Jacoby' via Programming <
>>>>> [email protected]> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> "how does one write understandable J?" One does not write understandable
>>>>> J! One writes as compactly as possible, and if it needs to be understood
>>>>> it's parts are investigated piece by piece. Understandability is not a
>>>>> property of text, but rather a property of relationship between text and
>>>>> reader. / Bo.
>>>>>> Den 3:51 fredag den 16. maj 2014 skrev Don Guinn <[email protected]>:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> What is easy and obvious depends so much on one's background. Several
>>>>> years
>>>>>>> ago we tried to teach a woman, at the time in her 80's, how to use a
>>>>>>> Windows computer. Total failure. The real problem was that she could
>>>>> see no
>>>>>>> use in or reason to use a computer. She had no interest in learning it.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Anyone who thinks that today's computer technology is intuitive, obvious
>>>>>>> and easy should go to an old folk's home and try to teach them to use a
>>>>>>> smart phone. But for a four-year-old. Piece of cake.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Thu, May 15, 2014 at 6:10 PM, Raul Miller <[email protected]>
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>> I am convinced that most code is not understandable to most people,
>>>>>>>> regardless of the language it is written in. When I look at how the
>>>>>>>> computer industry has progressed, I see this more and more. People
>>>>> write
>>>>>>>> huge amounts of code, don't document it very well, then other people
>>>>> use
>>>>>>>> arbitrary bits of it and things sort of just freeze at that point.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Personally, also, when I read code in any language, I do not feel I
>>>>> really
>>>>>>>> understand it until I see what it does to representative data.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> So clear descriptions, simple data, and good labels are where I would
>>>>> focus
>>>>>>>> most of my efforts in making code readable. And I would also expect
>>>>> that
>>>>>>>> most of my code is going to be unread by most people (and I'll get
>>>>> dinged
>>>>>>>> for utterly random stuff by people who do read it).
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I think the point of readability is: you are going to need to be able
>>>>> to
>>>>>>>> fix it, yourself, when it breaks, so you need to make it readable for
>>>>>>>> yourself. And for that purpose, coming back and trying to read it a
>>>>> month
>>>>>>>> or so after you've written it can be a good exercise.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Also, I've found that documenting code is a great way of making code
>>>>>>>> simpler. It's quite often the case that it's easier to change the code
>>>>> to
>>>>>>>> be easy to document than it is to document some coding quirks that
>>>>>>>> originally seemed to be a good idea. So if you want readable code,
>>>>> another
>>>>>>>> good thing to do is have a technical writer (or at least someone
>>>>> reasonably
>>>>>>>> literate) work with the programmer to document it for some audience.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Of course, the most important thing is making sure that it works.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>>> Raul
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On Thu, May 15, 2014 at 5:23 PM, Kip Murray <[email protected]>
>>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> How does one write understandable J? I offer my newt adverb below
>>>>> which
>>>>>>>>> uses spaces to promote understandability.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Another technique might be Linda's "bottom up" style of first showing
>>>>>>>>> pieces then putting the pieces together. What are your techniques?
>>>>>>>> Please
>>>>>>>>> illustrate.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> We would like at least to understand our own code when we come back to
>>>>>>>> it!
>>>>>>>>> NB. Newton's method
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> newt =: 1 : 0
>>>>>>>>> t =. y
>>>>>>>>> h =. 1 % 512
>>>>>>>>> whilst. t ~: s do.
>>>>>>>>> s =. t
>>>>>>>>> t =. s - +: h * (u s) % (u s + h) - u s - h
>>>>>>>>> h =. h % 2
>>>>>>>>> end.
>>>>>>>>> t
>>>>>>>>> )
>>>>>>>>> (2 - *:) newt 2 NB. Find root of 2 - *: near 2
>>>>>>>>> 1.41421
>>>>>>>>> (2 - *:) newt _2 NB. Find a root near _2
>>>>>>>>> _1.41421
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>>>> Sent from Gmail Mobile
>>>>>>>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>>>>>>> For information about J forums see
>>>>> http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>>>>>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>>>>>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>>>>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>>>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>>>>
>>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>>
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>>
>>
>>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
>
----------------------------------------------------------------------
For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------
For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
