Re: (fwd) Re: [R] the underscore ("_") in variable name

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Subject: Re: (fwd) Re: [R] the underscore ("_") in variable name
From: Alberto Murta (amurta@ipimar.pt)
Date: Wed 04 Oct 2000 - 00:45:32 EST 

Message-ID: <39D9F10C.F0E51F4B@ipimar.pt>

Duncan Murdoch wrote:

> I don't follow this argument. Underscore isn't used anywhere else in
> the language, so when you see one, you know it's an assignment. On
> the other hand, both "<" and "-" have multiple other uses. This leads
> to lots of possibilities for confusion:
>
> x <--5
> x < -5
> x <- 5

Those are classic examples. Nevertheless, "<-" is more appealing visually than "_"
as an assignment operator, mainly because "_" is used in file and variable names
in other programming languages.

> (Of course, I actually prefer the Pascalian :=, but I realize that
> puts me in a double minority :-).
>

Here I agree with you. I think that future releases of R should have "=" as the
assignement operator, just like the last version of S.

Alberto 

--
__________________ Alberto G. Murta ______________________
     IPIMAR - Institute of Fisheries and Sea Research
      Avenida de Brasilia; 1449-006 Lisboa; Portugal
Tel:351 213027062; Fax:351 213015948; http://www.ipimar.pt

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