That is true- it is so easy to name things "a", "b", "foo" in any
programming language. I have been guilty of that- it is because of
laziness in that it is easier to type "foo" than to type "rootmeansquare".
Comments are cheap, good identification of the problem and variables is
cheap- the result is priceless.
A powerful and positive aspect of J is that one can easily take an
"interesting and complex" part and play with it to determine what
approach works- experimentation is easy to do. If, as you indicate, if
what one wants is not what one gets, then review of the basics is
needed. The help needed is of importance and from what I have seen NuVoc
is a big step forward.
The ability to throw a problem onto this forum and get feedback is a
real boon.I have saved several variations that have been presented,
compared them as they apply to my specific needs -and kept them- with
comments. What is more important is that all of you contributing to this
forum have been a major help.
Thank You
Don Kelly
On 13/07/2014 4:19 PM, Raul Miller wrote:
This is not unique to APL. I've seen similar issues with .Net
programs, with C programs, with Java programs with Ruby programs, with
CP/M programs, etc. etc.
For that matter, I've seen analogous issues in non-programming contexts.
In the context of APL, I've often found that finding representative
example data, and watching how it gets transformed, tends to help make
clear all sorts of issues. Ideally you want something complex enough
to be interesting but small enough that you can see all of it.
But it really doesn't matter what language I'm working with - I almost
routinely need to review the definitions and reference documentation.
Whenever I feel I don't understand something adequately it's time to
go back and review the basics. It's a good way of getting unstuck (but
not the only way - for example: performing experiments is also
important, and sometimes sketching out details on a piece of paper or
in a text editor or just talking with someone can be the right thing
to do).
FYI,
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