I tend to agree. There is nothing about "format" that is intuitive to the non-initiated.
On Fri, Apr 21, 2017 at 8:51 PM, Curry Kenworthy via use-livecode < use-livecode@lists.runrev.com> wrote: > Mark Waddingham: > > I think this is perhaps more evidence that 'numberFormat' > > should probably be deprecated - or at least marked as > > 'present for HyperCard compatibility only and shouldn't > > be used in new code'. > > I emphatically disagree. > > There's nothing wrong with numberFormat as a binary to text option. On the > contrary, it's a splendid way to present the formatting to users. The array > key example is an outlier case to watch out for, but it's also easy to use > an alternate formatting option or careful coding for those rare cases. > > The numberFormat is very easy to read and clean, similar to formatting > systems used by Excel and others. (Naturally SpreadLib uses it too.) People > understand the representation intuitively, and it's also extremely popular. > > It provides a consistent shortcut compared to using a function several > times, for clean code with one statement to edit, so it is compatible with > KISS philosophy. > > I prefer numberFormat for most tasks and would detest having it > deprecated. Obviously the show must go on when someone concatenates text > with a number, so a default behavior would have to be in place for that > regardless (unless LC would throw an error), but we would lose the > customizable aspect. LiveCode will be disfigured if we hack off all the > pleasant parts. > > It will also be less "English-like" than before if we remove the wrong > parts. I've been working on materials for my new fluency method for > teaching LiveCode's syntax, based on proven language learning methods and > enhanced with my own additional techniques geared to CS and LC. > > This is such a readable sentence to teach and use: > > set the numberformat to "0.00" > > Although I don't have time to be as vocal an advocate as some others here > on LC trends and directions, there's so much to be said on the subject of > LC's English-like language, how to optimize learning and coding around it, > and what the result offers compared to other computing languages. (But I'll > say most of that in my upcoming book rather than here on the list.) > > I sure don't intend to teach the best parts of LC as deprecated or > denigrated, so I hope the language stays intact without self-mutilation. :) > > Best wishes, > > Curry K. > > _______________________________________________ > use-livecode mailing list > use-livecode@lists.runrev.com > Please visit this url to subscribe, unsubscribe and manage your > subscription preferences: > http://lists.runrev.com/mailman/listinfo/use-livecode > -- On the first day, God created the heavens and the Earth On the second day, God created the oceans. On the third day, God put the animals on hold for a few hours, and did a little diving. And God said, "This is good." _______________________________________________ use-livecode mailing list use-livecode@lists.runrev.com Please visit this url to subscribe, unsubscribe and manage your subscription preferences: http://lists.runrev.com/mailman/listinfo/use-livecode
