From: "Hal E. Fulton" <hal9000@...>
Date: 2001-01-28T09:16:32+09:00
Subject: [ruby-talk:9990] Re: line continuation

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Harry Ohlsen <harryo@zipworld.com.au>
To: ruby-talk ML <ruby-talk@netlab.co.jp>
Sent: Saturday, January 27, 2001 4:10 PM
Subject: [ruby-talk:9988] Re: line continuation


> >A statement break into mutliple lines if it is not complete,
> >i.e. "if the last token on a line is an operator or comma".
> >But you can also use \ as the last character on the line, to
> >continue on the next line.
> >
> >a = 2 +
> >    3
> >is equivalent to a=2+3
> >
> >a = 2  \
> >    + 3
> >
> >here you need the \ at the end of the line.
> 
> While it's nice that you can do this, can someone explain why it is
> that the Ruby parser can't work out that a statement is not finished,
> as, say, a C++ or Java parser can?
> 
> I assume it makes the parsing a little easier, but I do find it a pain
> each time I get a syntax error because of this sort of thing and it
> takes me a while to realise what the problem is.
> 

Well, for one thing, Ruby has no required statement terminator (semicolon).
And remember, a standalone expression is valid in Ruby.

Thus 

    a = 2
    +3

is actually two statements, isn't it?

Hal Fulton