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From: jimc@iscuva.UUCP (Jim Cathey)
Newsgroups: net.lang.c
Subject: Re: Precedent for use of =
Message-ID: <241@iscuva.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 2-Jul-86 21:43:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: iscuva.241
Posted: Wed Jul  2 21:43:43 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 4-Jul-86 06:43:48 EDT
References: <115@mruxe.UUCP>
Reply-To: jimc@iscuva.UUCP (Jim Cathey)
Organization: ISC Systems Corporation, Spokane, Wa.
Lines: 23
Keywords: Trivia


Why did Algol use := in the first place?  Why not some other symbol?
Was it just because it was easy to type on the keypunch?  (I think it
was a quick roll off the F to the V key with the shift down or
somesuch).  This makes no sense to me as I recall that Algol was
invented in much the same way as APL was -- as a language for humans to
express computer operations.  It was only implemented later.  Who knows
(who cares?).

If it was because of the keypunch, I wish that its demise would have
followed the Model 60.  := is a beach to type on every ASCII 'board
I've ever used.  Some other easy combo should have been chosen...  ;-)

-- 

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