Subject: C++ and macros [was: commit - Fix persistent ignore words stuff]
From: Mike Nordell (tamlin@algonet.se)
Date: Tue Apr 10 2001 - 12:03:37 CDT
A comment a bit late, but I think it's still valid.
Tom Briggs wrote:
> On Sun, 25 Mar 2001, WJCarpenter wrote:
>
> > Though I agree about the macros, I think this error would be made just
> > as often without them. (I should know since I believe I made the one
> > under discussion in this thread.) I think it's just one of the ragged
> > edges of C++ that people will forget the brackets. Yeah, it's rather
>
> Agreed. I don't think you misunderstand the use of DELETEPV vs.
> DELETEP, I think you just forgot the V. I don't think that you (or anyone
> else) will be any more likely to always remember [] vs. a V.
Perhaps not, but the latter is C++ which I think is a little more widely
used, known and understood than the ABI macros. It might be that someone is
working on "The Design & Evolution of AbiWord" that are to compete with the
C++ D&E without me knowing about it... :-)
Sometimes a macro indeed _is_ useful, even necessary, but I don't think
this is that place. We have (or so I'm told) on purpose not used some Design
Patterns, and we purposedly also chosen bad design sometimes, to
not request too much prerequisite knowledge & experience in C++ and OOD from
people wanting to contribute. Yet we use macros no one outside AbiWord ever
heard of, and possibly never would use.
Is this really the way to introduce those people to C++, using (apparently
error-prone) macros?
/Mike - don't cc
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