Xref: utzoo comp.lang.c:11055 comp.lang.fortran:856 Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!bloom-beacon!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!mailrus!ames!pacbell!att!ihnp4!ihlpf!nevin1 From: nevin1@ihlpf.ATT.COM (00704a-Liber) Newsgroups: comp.lang.c,comp.lang.fortran Subject: Re: C vs. FORTRAN Keywords: C FORTRAN exponentiation Message-ID: <5174@ihlpf.ATT.COM> Date: 30 Jun 88 23:55:04 GMT References: <3136@phoenix.Princeton.EDU> <19633@watmath.waterloo.edu> <147@quintus.UUCP> <20506@beta.lanl.gov> Reply-To: nevin1@ihlpf.UUCP (00704a-Liber,N.J.) Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories - Naperville, Illinois Lines: 37 In article <20506@beta.lanl.gov> jlg@beta.lanl.gov (Jim Giles) writes: |LISP isn't terribly hard to read either, but it's not what I want to |code numerical expressions in. The syntax that mathematics uses is |really well suited to the task. The programming language syntax for |the same purposes should look as similar as possible to the original |math. There is no reason that I can see to adopt any other rule of |choice in language design. Since when does 'x = x + 1' resemble anything besides an obviously false statement in mathematics?? Also, since many of us use C for tasks other than number crunching, does this mean that we should have NO desire for a programming language to resemble mathematics? Your reasoning is a little faulty here. |The choice I'm talking about is whether to cause a function call (the |most expensive of all the 'simple' operations). Doesn't matter what the |subroutine library does, you've already made the expensive call. A function call may not necessarily be made (can you say 'inlining'). |Fine, C is fixing something that shouldn't have been broken to begin with. It was never broken (a little inefficient, but not broken). |Finally! Something we agree upon. But what does this have to do with |the value of placing the operator into the syntax? Just because it's |seldom used for large or non-constant arguments, doesn't mean it needs |to be arcane or cryptic when it IS used. If all the arguments are constant, what do you need a run-time operator for? -- _ __ NEVIN J. LIBER ..!ihnp4!ihlpf!nevin1 (312) 510-6194 ' ) ) You are in a little twisting maze of / / _ , __o ____ email paths, all different. / (_