Re: RFC 263 (v1) Add null() keyword and fundamental data type

[Glenn Linderman]

Tom Christiansen wrote:

> >> I'm not happy with your use of "coerce".  There's no mutation.  It simply
> >> *is* those things.
>
> >Fine.  So, in particular, it _isn't_ null.
>
> Of course it's null.  That's why it has length zero.  Stop speaking
> SQL at me.  I'm speaking Perl.

No, in that wonderfully consistent Perl documentation, it's "undef" not null.  null
is only used to refer to (as you pointed out in another post)

   the null string
   the null character
   the null list

Those use null as an adjective.  This RFC proposes an addition to Perl terminology

   the null

This uses null as a noun, and it has a different meaning than undef.

>     undef $a;
>     @$a = ();
>     if ($a) { ..... } # always true
>
> It's the lvaluable deref that autoinitializes.

Thanks for the explanation.

--
Glenn
=====
Even if you're on the right track,
you'll get run over if you just sit there.
                       -- Will Rogers





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