Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!husc6!rutgers!att!pegasus!psrc
From: psrc@pegasus.ATT.COM (Paul S. R. Chisholm)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.smalltalk
Subject: Re: Variable scoping in Smalltalk
Summary: Capital Letters Are Global Names
Keywords: possibly obscure, not to my knowledge in blue book
Message-ID: <2719@pegasus.ATT.COM>
Date: 27 Mar 89 03:07:41 GMT
References: <935@cs-spool.calgary.UUCP>
Distribution: comp
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 25

<"Would you like me to summon Data so he could offer a few dozen synonyms?">

In article <935@cs-spool.calgary.UUCP>, bremner@cpsc.ucalgary.ca (David Bremner) writes:
> Object subclass: #Test
> 	instanceVariableNames: 'foo'
> 	classVariableNames: 'Bar'
> 	... "rest of keywords irrelevant"
... (I've abbreviated the rest of the message)
> aMethod
> 	"testing smalltalk variable scoping"
> 	| Bar |	"this works"
> anotherMethod
> 	"testing smalltalk variable scoping"
> 	| foo |	"this doesn't work; Name already defined -> foo"

Smalltalk is trying to do you a favor; it doesn't want you to lose
access to your instance variable.  Names beginning with capital letters
are shared.  I'm not quite sure what your implementation did with a
shared temporary variable.  IMHO, it goofed by not forbidding it.

>Bremner@UNCA-MULTICS.BITNET, bremner@ksi.cpsc.ucalgary.ca

Paul S. R. Chisholm, AT&T Bell Laboratories, att!pegasus!psrc
psrc@pegasus.att.com, AT&T Mail !psrchisholm
I'm not speaking for the company, I'm just speaking my mind.