[m-dev.] Commas considered optional

[Tyson Dowd]

On 29-Nov-2001, Ralph Becket <rafe at cs.mu.OZ.AU> wrote:
> p.s. The source code for the compiler includes some 270,000 commas.  If
> you assume it takes 0.2s to type a comma (the real figure is probably
> higher) then in excess of 15 working hours have been spent typing commas
> in the compiler alone!

This is not the real cost.  The real cost comes when moving code around
on a line-oriented basis, and forgetting to add a comma when you add
goals to a conjunction, or remove a comma when you remove goals from 
a conjunction.  This leads to a syntax error, which you have to
understand, find, fix, and recompile...

-- 
       Tyson Dowd           # 
                            #  Surreal humour isn't everyone's cup of fur.
     trd at cs.mu.oz.au        # 
http://www.cs.mu.oz.au/~trd #
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