On Fri, Jul 20, 2012 at 12:03 AM, Alpheus Madsen
<alpheus.mad...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Certainly using "--|" is very heavy, but the point of using . is that it
>> is much lighter visually.
>
>
> Just for clarification:  I've never used "--|" in a language as "official"
> syntax; I've used it (and variations of it) in Python and PHP when I really
> needed to see the structure.
>
> Come to think of it, there is Emacs code out there that can color-code the
> levels; I have never tried using it, though.

My argument still stands, though: sometimes the tool isn't there.
There's something to stuff that just works with plain text.

"." is the lightest syntax that is still typeable on the standard
keyboard: the period is the character with the smallest canonical
graphical representation that is typeable on a majority (all?) of
keyboards.

So: I'd like to know, if you think:

cond
  expr1?(f)
    let
      \\
        var
          list-of x
            t in '(1 2 3 4)
            pred?(t)
            x in range-of(0 t)
        var2
          kitty
            'meow
            'meow
      execute
        foo(var)
        quux(var2)
  expr2?(f)
    kitty
      'niaw
      expand-upon('niaw)
    woorf(f)
  #t
    error "bobcat: NYAWR"

is superior to:

cond
  expr1?(f)
  . let
  .   \\
  .   . var
  .   .   list-of x
  .   .     t in '(1 2 3 4)
  .   .     pred?(t)
  .   .     x in range-of(0 t)
  .   . var2
  .   .   kitty
  .   .     'meow
  .   .     'meow
  .   execute
  .     foo(var)
  .     quux(var2)
  expr2?(f)
  . kitty
  .   'niaw
  .   expand-upon('niaw)
  . woorf(f)
  #t
  . error "bobcat: NYAWR"

?

Personally, now that I've adjusted to the "." as indentation, it seems
to me that the "." vertical lines there are superior.  In fact, typing
in the latter is much easier than the former - I don't have to count
indents, I just look at the periods as a guide line/construction line
so that I align properly.  If we can make sweet-expressions much
easier to type in at a small cost to readability - and I think the
latter case as above isn't so bad readably, and is superior - than
perhaps we should consider putting it in.

Sincerely,
AmkG

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