[r6rs-discuss] [Formal] please make square brackets more useful

From: William D Clinger <will>
Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2007 10:38:07 -0400

Sam TH wrote:
> Are any of these "truly useful" extensions implemented in a
> currently-available Scheme system?

Yes. Many existing systems provide customizable readers,
and redefining [ and ] to do something useful is one of
the more popular customizations. Jonathan's proposal is
an attempt to preserve this legacy.

> I would venture that more than 90% of the current uses of square
> brackets in (working) Scheme code are of the variety specified in the
> draft R6RS.

I would agree that redefining [ and ] to do something
useful is not as popular a pastime as redefining [ and ]
to do something useless.

To understand that phenomenon would require consideration
of the human condition.

Will
Received on Wed Jun 20 2007 - 10:38:07 UTC