From: Nikolai Weibull <mailing-lists.ruby-talk@...>
Date: 2005-02-23T00:24:41+09:00
Subject: Re: Proposal for nil, 0, and "" in an if statement

* Gavin Kistner (Feb 22, 2005 14:50):
> I don't have actual code, but imagine looping through records returned
> with financial data, and you want to print out a "-" if the field is
> missing -or- zero. The whole "this field doesn't have any meaningful
> information that contributes to the sum of the column" spreadsheet
> thing.

How is a yearly/monthly/weekly/daily/whatever revenue of $0 not
meaningful information?  Poor example I'm sure, but yours wasn't much
better.

> I would support an RCR with this proposal, under just about any method
> name :) And I agree, boolean types need the same method as well.

Wow.  I wonder what George Boole would say if he heard that his logic
was being abused in this manner.

Boolean values are either true or false.  They don't have an inherit
property dictating whether they are empty or non-empty.  Sets may be
empty or non-empty,
	nikolai (the smug bastard)

-- 
::: name: Nikolai Weibull    :: aliases: pcp / lone-star / aka :::
::: born: Chicago, IL USA    :: loc atm: Gothenburg, Sweden    :::
::: page: www.pcppopper.org  :: fun atm: gf,lps,ruby,lisp,war3 :::
main(){printf(&linux["\021%six\012\0"],(linux)["have"]+"fun"-97);}