I also stick to a pretty rigid 78 characters. Doing so actually helps me fit more code onto my screen at a time because I usually have two or three columns of open files side by side. I find that I need this more often than I need to see a single function on a page (thanks to Haskell's traditionally small functions). But this works for single functions as well because I can open the same file in multiple columns at different locations in the file.
"The ideal line length for text layout is based on the physiology of the human eye… At normal reading distance the arc of the visual field is only a few inches – about the width of a well-designed column of text, or about 12 words per line. Research shows that reading slows and retention rates fall as line length begins to exceed the ideal width, because the reader then needs to use the muscles of the eye and neck to track from the end of one line to the beginning of the next line. If the eye must traverse great distances on the page, the reader is easily lost and must hunt for the beginning of the next line. Quantitative studies show that moderate line lengths significantly increase the legibility of text." Web Style Guide – Basic Design Principles for Creating Website Patrick J. Lynch and Sarah Horton 2nd edition, page 97. On Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 10:37 AM, Jake McArthur <jake.mcart...@gmail.com> wrote: > I stick to 80 columns fairly rigidly. This is not only so that it fits > into narrow windows, but also so that any two subexpressions in the > same expression tend to be close together on my screen, which makes it > easier for me to reason about it. If only it was easy for me to read > and write code on a Hilbert curve... :) > > I don't think long lines indicate a design problem; it's solely a > formatting thing. > > On Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 7:50 AM, Rustom Mody <rustompm...@gmail.com> wrote: >> There was a recent discussion on the python list regarding maximum line >> length. >> It occured to me that beautiful haskell programs tend to be plump (ie have >> long lines) compared to other languages whose programs are 'skinnier'. >> My thoughts on this are at >> http://blog.languager.org/2012/10/layout-imperative-in-functional.html. >> >> Are there more striking examples than the lexer from the standard prelude? >> [Or any other thoughts/opinions :-) ] >> >> Thanks, >> Rusi >> >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Haskell-Cafe mailing list >> Haskell-Cafe@haskell.org >> http://www.haskell.org/mailman/listinfo/haskell-cafe >> > > _______________________________________________ > Haskell-Cafe mailing list > Haskell-Cafe@haskell.org > http://www.haskell.org/mailman/listinfo/haskell-cafe _______________________________________________ Haskell-Cafe mailing list Haskell-Cafe@haskell.org http://www.haskell.org/mailman/listinfo/haskell-cafe
