The rectangular array is the basic data type for APL. Until fairly recently, the BEAM had no reasonable implementation of this. However, it seems like Nx's tensors might serve...
Breaking lines at logical boundaries in the "source code" makes it easier for me to see the structure of the text. It also gives me the ability to see the text in two different layouts; this often lets me spot errors which would otherwise slip by.
This is sort of a "generative" (aka property-based) approach to testing makefiles. So, I'd like to see a variation that can find a minimal failing subset of the makefile rules, as in QuickCheck:
> In QuickCheck, assertions are written about logical properties that a function should fulfill. Then QuickCheck attempts to generate a test case that falsifies such assertions. Once such a test case is found, QuickCheck tries to reduce it to a minimal failing subset by removing or simplifying input data that are unneeded to make the test fail. -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QuickCheck
Nicely written article, but it seems to conflate "what it should do" with "how it should do it". So, for example, it talks a lot about optimizations (which feel like implementation decisions).
I'm not saying they aren't important in this DB, but they might not be as relevant in another. For example, Datomic doesn't go this direction, but its ability to avoid read locks on long-running queries might dance around many optimization issues.
FWIW, I like the use of Cypher, which I first encountered in Neo4j. It has always felt pretty intuitive to me, though I don't know all of its limitations and strengths.
I tried to talk about "what it should do" at a higher-level. As a comparison, if you want to read something that is similar in spirit but discusses "how GDBMSs should do" certain things, you can look at the link I have in footnote 4. This is what I call the CWI list of how GDBMSs can be architected to be competent. The CWI list's items are specific implementation and optimization "techniques", like columnar storage, vectorized processing etc.
I can happily say that this list comes from Peter Boncz, who was an early pioneer of analytical RDBMSs, and Peter and I have similar opinions on these core architectural decisions here. And Kùzu currently adopts (or we are implementing) 11 of 12 techniques there.
FYI, in my next posts, I will talk about "how a GDBMS should do" features 1 and 2 in my list, using specific query processing techniques we have implemented in Kùzu.
Life hack: weigh cartons of eggs (Jumbo and any other sizes), then calculate the cost per ounce (or whatever). Jumbo eggs are often a real bargain (but you may need to adjust recipes).
BASIC, Forth, Logo, Python, and Ruby are all reasonable starter languages for children. Although Python's semantic indentation can be a hassle for blind users, this isn't an insuperable problem. And, given Python's immense popularity, it is likely to be around and very usable for a long time.
The other day I wrote a fan letter to a developer who has been maintaining a popular and useful library for several years. In his reply, he said that this was the first fan letter he had ever received. I think we need to show Open Source developers a lot more love and a lot less snark...
There have been a few times - reading blog articles or pieces of code - where I've been tempted to write to the author to show some appreciation, but have shied away from it thinking they might take it as creepy or parasocial. It wouldn't, of course, I can write a quick "hey, I really liked this" note without coming across like a maniac, but a little voice always stops me short. I'll try to ignore it in future :)
You’re definitely right. It’s only happened a few times for me and it can be a bit disheartening because you’ll definitely hear from the people who think you’re their enterprise support team or feel that clear gap on the project were suggestions for large amounts of work.
The addition of discussion sections for repos has been really great for this. On a lot of larger projects there's appreciation threads. But any project with thousands of downloads is obviously useful enough to warrant a quick thanks
