screens other than 0-9 (was: Re: Windows 2003/IIS 6issues...newand improved ones.)

[Fairlight]

Y'all catch dis heeyah?  GCC Consulting been jivin' 'bout like:
> 
> If you only have one screen being used, why create a named screen when there
> are plenty of numbers left for use?

I'll answer that, since I have an answer that doesn't require debating a
finer point (ie., I don't have to start a sub-thread debating the pros and
cons of ACLs for fP, which would likely never happen at this late date).

The short answer is, "Because it's descriptive.  Why use long variable
names like 'NetIncome' when you could just use 'ni'?  By the same token, "0"
(or more likely "9", since I'd tend to shove them at the high end) doesn't
tell me if it was a private 9 meant for debugging or a public 9 meant for
consumption, unless I have an established standard of procedure for such a
context--which I don't, most of my development in fP still being 99% web
based [including now...I actually wanted the debug screen for a database to
see if it was affected at all from something run under IIS, before I got
my IIS/Windows issues out of the way, as you could not redirect stdout in
Windows in the context I was using, and system() was actually partly what
was in contention from perl].  In this case, 'debug1' was descriptive to
me.  So, that being said, I have to ask in response, 'Why use descriptive
long variable names like 'NetIncome' when you could use 'ni' if it hadn't
been used already...or any of the other 26*26 combinations that are allowed
2-char dummy fields?  And there are 4096 of those, where there are only 10
usable screen names until you hit this.'  The answer, of course, is because
it's a helpful indicator of what it is when you have no established prior
procedure."

In either event, you're tapping a limited resource using one over the
other, and both the limited resources are less than descriptive.

And I do use long variable names for everything now, yes.  Same reason.
Back in the Apple 2 BASIC days, I took great pride in being "smart enough"
(more like arrogant enough) to use cryptic variable names and eschew
comments.  Nowadays, after much sleep deprivation and 24 years of getting
older and having my memory degrade, it's just common sense to do what's
memorable -and- use comments so I don't waste time or make mistakes.
Omitting sleep deprivation's effects, I'd think anyone over 45 or so would
probably be hitting some OldTimer's moments now and again that make this a
wise idea, and would know from where I'm coming on this.

Okay, that wasn't hugely short, but it answers the question.  :)

mark->
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