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From: ee163acp@sdcc13.UUCP (DARIN JOHNSON)
Newsgroups: net.lang.apl,net.lang.c,net.lang.lisp,net.lang.pascal,net.lang.mod2,net.lang.prolog,net.lang.st80
Subject: Re: Language Idioms
Message-ID: <156@sdcc13.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 16-Feb-85 16:20:01 EST
Article-I.D.: sdcc13.156
Posted: Sat Feb 16 16:20:01 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 19-Feb-85 06:03:15 EST
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I think the term idiom is appropriate in this usage.  To me and idiom is
something native speakers of a language readily understand, but which
book-learned speakers have difficulty when translating.  They are
usually context sensitive.  For example, the C favorite for 
  for (;;)
is usually readily understood by C programmers, but FORTRAN and other
similar programmers have a different concept of what the word 'for'
means.  They may think that this is an endless loop until the context is
looked at (a break inside the loop).  Another problem with C 'for'
statements is that it is really a form of the 'while' confusing lots of
people who thought they knew what a 'for' statement was.
  LISP provides lots of confusion for people who read the manuals that
have only definitions of the words.  There is almost no way to
understand a LISP program by using a 'dictionary'.  A moderate user will
also be confused over some strange shorthand.  The APL example given
earlier is a classic example of what I consider an 'idiom'.  Why in the
world would anyone want to '.and' a list of words????
  So if you take 'idiom' at its defined meaning, it is mostly applicable
to usage as a programming word.  (at least it is the closest in meaning
what is needed)


Darin Johnson @ UCSD