[deleted]
A made-up name is better than no name
71–80 of 86 posts
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#72This didn't sit quite right with me and I think I've pinned down why. The nature of code is that it is communication: it communicates action to the computer and behavior to the reader. Variable names are not for the computer, they are for the reader, so, whenever possible, the names we use should be meaningful to the reader. If the name requires specialized knowledge, such as "what does this name mean," it is lingo,…
The more abstract and technical the subject matter the less likely that it will mirror a familiar real world experience and have a good word. Using a real world name can actually be distracting because it may suggest attributes and behaviors which are not true of the thing. This is why math papers use Greek letters. There is no words for “the amount of space where if the function is close enough than the cube of that…
> Even “string” is technical jargon.
"string of characters" as a concept substantially predates the first computers: https://www.google.com/search?q=%22string+of+characters%22&l...
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#73Instead of "kep", if you want something that visually stands out, there are also lots of fun little symbol-like characters you can use, even when you're dealing with a language where identifiers are limited to ID_Start/ID_Continue (e.g. Javascript, Rust). My favorite collection :) ⴵ ⵛ ꘜ ⵣ ꕤ ꖜ ꘖ ꧮ ⴲ Ⰴ Ⰺ
No multicoocular O? And try Luwian for a real kick: the cutest script.
Be nꙮt afraid.
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#74don't do that! the word you use a lot in your description is "pair"...
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#75Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#76> A Made-up Name is Better Than No Name Perhaps, but a meaningful name is better than an arbitrary made-up name.
> a meaningful name is better than an arbitrary made-up name. What's the difference? All names are ultimately arbitrary and made-up. For what it is worth, my best at attempt at interpreting this is that a meaningful name is an arbitrary, made-up name that also comes with a reasonably precise definition. In which case, the idea of choosing a meaningful name is the intent of the article.
> All names are ultimately arbitrary and made-up.
You could say that all of human experience is arbitrary and all ideas are made up...
The difference between arbitrary and non-arbitrary in this respect is whether someone who speaks the language and has a general relevant technical background would understand what the name means, in principle, or not. If the developer makes up something arbitrary themselves, then they would understand it, and so would one or two people who review the code or interact with it. Anyone else coming onto the scene would _not_ understand what that's about. You would end up with a glossary of bespoke terms not known to anybody else in the world. Now just think what were to happen if each repository of code had its own glossary of this kind. (shivers)
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#77Earlier quoted context omitted.
They are acronyms. Why do you think differently? And acronyms are abbreviations. If you want to argue more you could state they’re initialisms, but SAN is standard algebraic notation so it’s definitely an acronym, while EPD could be argued not, but instead to be an initialism. In any case Wikipedia says it’s not a settled matter so why even argue about it? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym
I’m not OP, but I’ll answer the question for me. I think differently because I was taught differently in English class about 40 years ago. The wikipedia page makes a weak argument. What do you think distinguishes an acronym from other abbreviations?
Acronyms and initialisms are formed by each of the first letters of a phrase. Acronyms are distinguished from initialisms by being pronounced as a word rather than saying each letter individually. Abbreviations are shortened words or phrases: apartment=apt., captain=cpt., corporation=corp., minute=min., etc.
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#78I really don’t like this idea if you are sharing this code base with anyone else. I work in one of the magnificent seven and the culture here is codename crazy. Everything has code names, of course: every project, every release of every project, every component or subservice of every project, every internal tool, and often minor features that address some one-off problem in any of the above. I am sure that these name…
I figure it would be awful hard to communicate without the semantic shortcuts that comprise a vocabulary
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#79I really don’t like this idea if you are sharing this code base with anyone else. I work in one of the magnificent seven and the culture here is codename crazy. Everything has code names, of course: every project, every release of every project, every component or subservice of every project, every internal tool, and often minor features that address some one-off problem in any of the above. I am sure that these name…
I've only worked at a company with around 300 employees and I've still struggled with this issue.
Re: A made-up name is better than no name
#80I once worked for a company that decided to eliminate internal codenames and instead use the actual brand names used by our customers. It removed a barrier to communication with no undesirable side effects. Thank you Tim! You did us a solid.
This falls down when you're talking about internal components of products that don't have brand names though.
Oh, no! What shall we do now?