#17958: implement declare_var, deprecate (None)var
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Reporter: rws | Owner:
Type: defect | Status: new
Priority: major | Milestone: sage-6.6
Component: symbolics | Resolution:
Keywords: | Merged in:
Authors: | Reviewers:
Report Upstream: N/A | Work issues:
Branch: | Commit:
Dependencies: | Stopgaps:
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Comment (by mmezzarobba):
Replying to [comment:22 jhpalmieri]:
> Re `SR.var('x')`: "What does SR mean?" "The Symbolic Ring." "What's a
ring?"
>
> Remember that we have users who just want to do calculus. They don't
know what a ring is. They also are not that familiar with Python, and we
shouldn't use this particular situation to educate them on Python syntax.
I doubt you can use sage (and not shoot yourself in the foot on every
possible occasion) without understanding this kind of things at least a
little. And for sure I've seen intelligent people with a very reasonable
level in math, use sage in teaching while completely misunderstanding how
basic things work... because, at first, they just wanted to do calculus,
so they were led to use things like `var('x')` without understanding what
they did, and basically assumed that names in sage had the same kinds of
semantics as in maple.
> The name `declare_var` could maybe be improved because of the different
uses of the word "variable". Something like `declare_math_var`?
`declare_math_symbol`? `new_math_symbol`?
`declare_symbolic_variable` perhaps, if you really feel such a function is
useful?
--
Ticket URL: <http://trac.sagemath.org/ticket/17958#comment:23>
Sage <http://www.sagemath.org>
Sage: Creating a Viable Open Source Alternative to Magma, Maple, Mathematica,
and MATLAB
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